KEY THEMES
So far into 2022, global stock markets are starting on the wrong foot. While other global stock markets are mostly down for the year, the U.S. stock market just registered its worst weekly performance since the onset of COVID-19. Last week, both Down Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 fell 4.6% and 5.7%, respectively. The Nasdaq composite tech-laden index alone fell 7.6% last week. Such a negative performance has mostly been driven by a general risk-off mode in anticipation of the Fed hiking interest rates. This is feared would mean lower valuation for U.S. stocks. Elsewhere, the slide is not as severe in other major global markets.
Back home, Fawry [FWRY] fell for the fifth trading session in a row after the company announced Thursday morning it was calling for an EGP800mn capital increase at a par value of EGP0.50, thus almost doubling its outstanding shares. While the news may have seemed to be a short term negative for investors who do not like to take part in any cash capital increase, the announcement had a silver lining. FWRY's board has agreed to consider listing in the U.S. market through an American Depository Shares (ADS) program through a secondary offering, although the size, share price, and timing are all still unknown. Such a U.S. listing may attract interest from foreign investors to Egypt's first fintech player to go public, but the timing and hence the impact is of the essence given that the U.S. markets are now in a correction mode.