Egypt Watch

Steel prices keep rising in Egypt

Friday, steel prices jumped again in Egypt, increasing more than 4,700 pounds per ton.
Beshai Steel Company notified its customers that the price of a ton had reached about 20,970 pounds. The Suez and Al-Masryyen companies also raised their prices by about 3 thousand pounds. According to experts, the rise in prices is due to a decrease in the quantities supplied by factories. Some companies run out of stocks, or other companies keep their production in anticipation of further price hikes in the coming days.

A significant steel merchant confirmed a discrepancy in prices in light of the decreasing quantities supplied from factories – most of which are directed to projects supervised by the armed forces. He added that the decreased supply in the market is due to the decline in the quantities produced by factories due to the unavailability of imported raw materials at present due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Russia and Ukraine are among the essential steel-exporting countries.

Experts had previously expected an increase in steel and cement prices by about 30% this year. However, after the recent devaluation of the local currency, they indicated that the increase could reach another 30%, which will lead to a rise in real estate prices. The Egyptian markets had witnessed a wave of inflation following the Central Bank’s decision last Monday to raise interest rates by 1%. Thus the exchange rate of the pound fell by about 17%, as the selling price of the dollar was recorded at 18.55 pounds. Experts predict that the inflation rate will rise significantly throughout the year and that there will be new decisions related to moving prices or lifting subsidies on some commodities.

Gold was among the commodities that reacted quickly to the drop in the price of the pound, as the price of 21C gold amounted to about 1,025 pounds, compared to 892 pounds before the pound decline, while 18C gold amounted to about 878 pounds and 24c gold amounted to about 1,171 pounds. Head of the Gold and Jewelry Division at the General Federation of Chambers of Commerce, Hani Milad, said that gold prices had peaked.

Experts in the religious tourism sector expected an increase in the prices of Umrah programs after the drop in the price of the pound against foreign currencies, including the Saudi riyal, in addition to an expected rise in the prices of airline tickets. Member of the General Assembly of the Chamber of Tourism Companies, Alaa Al-Ghamry, said that there is an expected rise in the prices of Umrah programs, pointing out that it is difficult to determine the rates of rising due to the instability of the currency price so far.

Moreover, car brands raised the prices of their models by a large percentage, with an increase that ranged between 35,000 and 46,000 pounds, in anticipation of a further decline in the pound. The head of one car company said that car prices would go up by at least 20 to 25 per cent. Unofficial price increases imposed by car distributors and dealers have risen to 20,000 pounds for some categories in return for immediate delivery.

Experts say that the real estate market, which is already witnessing an increase in prices due to the rise in iron and cement prices, will witness an additional increase. One of the sector’s experts expected real estate prices to rise by 15% during the second quarter of 2022. A member of the Businessmen Association expected that the percentage would reach 20%, while another member expected that the increase would reach 30%. Iron and cement prices continued to rise, as a ton of Ezz steel price reached about 1,9000 pounds per ton. Finally, the prices of mobile phone calls are expected to rise and the prices of mobile phones, which are expected to rise by at least 15%.