Cairo has been listed as the least expensive city in the Middle East for expatriates, according to the 24th annual Cost of Living Survey released by Mercer, the world’s largest human resources consulting firm. Last year Cairo ranked at the 183rd spot globally, with a sudden decline of 92 spots from 2016 in wake of a major devaluation of the country’s local currency. It currently ranks at the 188th spot world-wide, a five point drop from last year.

Egypt s domestic debt rose by LE100 billion during the second quarter of the 2017-18 fiscal year. The increase, registered from October to December 2017, put more weight on the government s shoulders and has concerned commentators. “The rise in domestic debt could impede the state s ability to meet its commitment with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to reduce the budget deficit,” said Alia Al-Mahdi, a Cairo University professor of economics.

The European Union has removed additional import controls placed on Egyptian strawberries, following Egypt s implementation of "very rigorous" inspection standards for its exported produce of the fruit, Egypt s agriculture ministry spokesman told Ahram Online on Thursday. The tight EU regulations were introduced amid agricultural export bans on a number of Egyptian crops due to pesticide residues, spokesman Hamed Abdel Dayem said, not specifying when the controls were first put in place.

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry discussed Egypt s counter-terrorism efforts with a senior German politician on Wednesday as part of his three-day visit to the German capital, Berlin. Shoukry and Norbert Röttgen, chairman of the Bundestag s Committee on Foreign Affairs, also discussed means to bolster coordination on regional and international issues.

Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly reviewed the government policy program during a general session on Tuesday for the House of Representatives, promising poverty alleviation during his tenure. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi appointed Madbouly, former housing minister, as the new prime minister in June 7, with his cabinet sworn in at June 14.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly presented to parliament on Tuesday the policy statement of his newly formed cabinet, as per the country s constitution, highlighting his cabinet s policy priorities. Madbouly and his cabinet were sworn in by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on 14 June, replacing the cabinet of former prime minister Sherif Ismail who resigned earlier that month.

Egypt s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is expected to start on Tuesday a trip to Germany and Austria for political and economic talks with his counterparts, according to a statement by Egypt s foreign ministry. The two-day visit to Germany will address Egyptian-German relations in various sectors, especially investment cooperation and increasing trade exchange.

Egypt s parliament provisionally approved on Monday a government-drafted law on regulating bidding procedures. Following a long debate, MPs and Minister of Finance Mohamed Maeet decided to change the name of the legislation to "the Law on Regulating Public Contracts."

Moussa Mostafa Moussa, the former presidential candidate and head of the Ghad Party, said he would work to form a national opposition party that would stand by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s side to counter terrorism and to find positive solutions to any problems in the country. The state can not continue with one wing, it needs a genuine opposition to support the state, Moussa added in a phone call on Sunday evening with “90 Minutes” program, broadcast on Al-Mehwar channel.

Egypt s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly spoke about institutional reforms and the financing of the African Union during the opening of the AU s 31st Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Heads of State and Government held in Mauritania. The AU session is being held on 1 and 2 July under the theme Winning the Fight against Corruption: A Sustainable Path to Africa s Transformation.

Egypt said on Sunday that construction of its first nuclear power plant, to be built by Russia, will begin in the next two to two-and-a-half years. The 4,800 megawatt (MW) capacity plant at Dabaa in the north of the country, aims to be up and running by 2026, a spokesman for the energy and electricity ministry told Reuters.

Egypt s Minister of Supply Ali El-Mosielhy has affirmed that consumers will not bear the increased cost of food commodities due to the recent hike in fuel prices. El-Mosielhy held a meeting on Thursday with major food producers and importers, as well as representatives of the Chamber of Commerce Union, where they agreed to bear the cost of increased food prices.

The Egyptian Public Prosecution and the Italian Prosecution issued a joint statement on Wednesday surveillance camera recordings at the Cairo metro stations on January 25, 2016, saying it did not show any footage for murdered Italian student Giulio Regeni inside or near the metro stations. Nothing useful for the investigations was found in the recordings, according to the statement.

Egypt announced the end of its wheat harvest on Wednesday with a total of 3.15 million tonnes of the grain procured from local farmers, Supply Minister Ali Moselhy said in a statement, one of the lowest tallies in years for the world s largest importer. Egypt had said previously it was looking to purchase 3.5 to 4 million tonnes of local wheat, a critical staple it uses to supply a sprawling bread subsidy programme relied on by tens of millions of Egyptians.

Egypt s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is set to fly to Nouakchott on Wednesday to participate in the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Executive Council of the African Union. In an official statement released on Tuesday, Egypt s foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said the Egyptian participation in the summit and its preparatory meetings comes as part of a constant Egyptian commitment to react to the continent s issues, especially as Egypt prepares to chair the top summit in January 2019.

France is one of the biggest foreign investors in Egypt, with investments worth over 4 billion euros, Al-Ahram Arabic website reported Egypt s investment minister as saying on Tuesday. There are more than 160 French companies working in Egypt with investments worth 4 billion euros, Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr said at the inauguration of an economic forum on the future of economic relations between the two countries, held at the Arab World Institute in Paris.

The West Cairo prosecution on Monday issued an order that the head of the Hadayek al-Qubba’s police station be put into custody for four days, pending investigations over the death of a defendant who died in the station. According to Akhabr Al-Youm newspaper, the prosecution also ordered the arrests of four non-commissioned police officers involved in the death.

Egypt s Ministry of Education and Scientific Research and the UK s University of Liverpool agreed to develop a strategic partnership through joint research and innovation activities, signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) according to an announcement by the UK embassy in Cairo on Monday. In an official press release, the UK Embassy said the MOU was signed following a meeting between Egypt s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Khaled Abdel-Gaffer and a high level delegation led by 11 UK university representatives visiting between 24-27 June.

Egypt s Prosecutor General Nabil Sadiq issued an international order to Interpol to arrest three Libyan Islamic State (IS) terrorists accused of collaborating with an Egyptian suspect in gathering information, kidnapping Egyptians working in Libya and demanding a ransom. The Supreme State Security Prosecution had earlier launched investigations into security information that the suspect, Mohammed Ragab Abdel Wahid Hassan, was collaborating with the IS in Libya.

A nationwide state of emergency was extended for a further three months starting 14 July, following parliamentary approval on Sunday. The ongoing state of emergency was extended by a presidential decree issued by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi but was pending approval by parliament.

The Cairo Criminal Court has sentenced a police officer to five years of rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting a defendant in a police vehicle, Al-Ahram reported. The case dates back to June 2016, when the head of the investigations department of Zagazig police station received a complaint from a 37-year-old female defendant saying that she was harassed and raped by a police officer while being escorted to the prosecution’s office. Subsequent investigations confirmed the accusation and the officer was referred to the Criminal Court.