Egypt s trade deficit dropped by 43.8 percent in May compared to the same month last year, the state-run statistical body CAPMAS revealed on Monday. The trade deficit reached approximately $2.32 billion in May 2017 versus $4.14 billion a year earlier. Exports saw an 8.8 percent increase in May 2017 compared to May 2016, rising to $2.28 billion from $2.09 billion.

The issue of Egyptian news websites blocked by the government will be "resolved" in the coming week, the head of Egypt s journalists syndicate said on Sunday. In comments carried by state-run news agency MENA, Abdel-Mohsen Salama said the issue would be fixed within a week at the most, although he didn t say whether this meant those websites currently blocked would be unblocked.

The foreign ministers of four Arab nations – Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE – said on Sunday that they will continue their boycott of Qatar and will not retreat on their demands, while stressing they would be ready for dialogue with the Gulf country if their demands are met. At a joint press conference in the Bahraini capital of Manama on Sunday, Bahrain s Foreign Minister Khaled bin Khalifa read out a joint statement asserting that the four nations will not backtrack on their 13 demands.

The UAE will back Egypt s candidate for the post of the director-general of UNESCO, Egypt s state-run agency MENA reported on Sunday. A statement by the UAE foreign ministry cited the "historical and brotherly relations between Egypt and the UAE, as well as Egypt s contribution to human civilisation and role in cultural and scientific progress."

Euromoney s annual gathering, the Euromoney Egypt Conference, will return to Cairo on 18-19 September for its 22nd edition to discuss growing opportunities for investment and partnership in Egypt. Victoria Behn, director of the Middle East and Africa at the Euromoney Conference, said that the conference is delighted to be working with the government of Egypt on an agenda that gives a comprehensive and compelling overview of Egypt s finance and investment outlook.

Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said on Thursday at a meeting of a high-level Egyptian-Jordanian commission in Amman that his country aims to bolster its investment and economic ties with Jordan. Ismail during his speech at the 27th round of the commission said that Cairo aims to “push forward trade and investment relations with Amman,” adding that the Egyptian government seeks to amend investment legislation to streamline doing business in Egypt.

Egypt s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi issued a decree on Tuesday formally establishing the National Council to Combat Terrorism and Extremism, which will be tasked with "mobilising institutions and the public" to counter terrorism and its causes, state news agency MENA reported. The council, which is chaired by the presidency, will include the parliament speaker, the prime minister, the grand imam of Al-Azhar, the Coptic Orthodox pope, as well as a number of ministers, including the defence, religious endowments, justice, interior and foreign ministers.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with Libya s Prime Minister Fayez Al-Serraj and the United Nations envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame in Paris on Tuesday, a foreign affairs ministry statement released early Wednesday read. According to the statement, Shoukry hailed the meeting that took place, also in Paris on Tuesday, between Al-Serraj and the divided country s eastern commander Khalifa Haftar, during which they both committed to a conditional ceasefire and and to work towards holding elections next spring, in talks chaired by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Cairo has the second largest number of high net-worth individuals (HNWI) in Africa, coming in right after South Africa’s Johannesburg, which is home to the largest number with 18,200 HNWIs, according to AfrAsia Bank’s 2017 Africa Wealth Report. Home to 8,900 millionaires, 480 of whom are multi-millionaires, Cairo has almost 8 times more HNWIs than Egypt’s port city of Alexandria — where 1,800 millionaires reside.

Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain have issued a joint statement on Monday designating nine entities and nine people as involved in terrorist activities and linked to the Arab gulf state of Qatar, state-run news agency MENA reported. In a joint statement, nine charity entities were listed as linked to “terrorism" supported by Qatar, with three based in Yemen and six in Libya.

Egypt s foreign reserves are now close to $35 billion, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi announced during a question-and-answer forum at the Fourth National Youth conference in Alexandria on Monday. “I am doing my best, Egyptians. Are you fulfilling your duties?” El-Sisi said, addressing the attendees and television audience.

Egypt s Fourth National Youth Conference started on Monday in the coastal city of Alexandria, with President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi in attendance. The two-day conference is scheduled to address the Egypt 2030 Development Plan – the ambitious development programme formulated by the government, the private sector and NGOs, which has been two years in the making. The conference is the most recent in a series of events in Sharm El-Sheikh, Aswan and Ismailia aimed at tackling issues of direct relevance to Egypt s young people, including enhancing their political participation and preparing them for future leadership roles.

The Egyptian Ministry of Civil Aviation received correspondence from Russian authorities stating security delegates from the Russian Ministry of Transport, specialized in airport security, would be sent to Cairo Monday evening to review the latest security developments at Egyptian airports, specifically Terminal 2 at Cairo Airport, the airports of Sharm el-Sheikh and Hurghada. Sources told Al-Masry Al-Youm, Monday, that this step was “positive from the Russian side, especially after talks of suspension in this regard for more than 3 months.

The Arab League will hold an emergency ministerial meeting on Wednesday to discuss recent Israeli escalations against Palestinians, according to an Arab League statement on Sunday. "At the request of the Kingdom of Jordan, supported by a number of the member states, it was decided to hold an emergency meeting of the Council of the League of Arab States Foreign Ministers on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the latest attacks and Israeli actions in the city of Jerusalem and on the compound of Al- Aqsa Mosque," the Arab League spokesman said in a statement reported by state-run news agency MENA. On Friday, Israel closed the Al-Aqsa compound for Friday prayers after it installed metal detectors at its entrances, citing security concerns.

Naval forces rescued a tourist boat from drowning off the coast of Hurghada, the military spokesperson announced on Sunday.

President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi asserted on Saturday that Egypt is going two main struggles which are countering terrorism and achieving social and economic development during his speech in the inauguration ceremony of the newly established Mohamed Naguib military base West of Alexandria in the Matrouh governorate. Al-Sisi greeted the Egyptian people for enduring the difficulties of economic developments, adding that he feels proud in front of the international community that the Egyptian have supported the economic policies. He also talked about the phenomenon of terrorism adding that it is a complicated issue with several problems, the most important of which is the support of countries and foreign entities. He asserted that the fight against terrorism should not be limited to the field but should expand to counter its financial, logistical sources.

Egypt s agricultural exports rose 12.1 percent during the first half of 2017, reaching 3.5 million tonnes compared to 3.1 million last year, agriculture ministry spokesman Hamid Abdel Dayim said on Wednesday. Egypt s agricultural exporters have seen a surge in demand since the country floated its currency last November, allowing it to roughly halve in value as part of reforms tied to a three-year $12 billion International Monetary Fund loan agreement.

The US Department of State issued a message on Wednesday warning citizens to consider the risks of traveling to Egypt due to the presence of IS and other militant groups in the country’s northern region. The cautionary statement highlighted the heavy security measures undertaken by the Egyptian government at major tourist sites such as Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada. However, it noted that terrorist groups have executed multiple attacks in Egypt, targeting government officials and security forces, public venues, tourist sites, civil aviation and other modes of public transportation and diplomatic facilities. The message also shed light on recent attacks on religious sites, namely, local Coptic churches and people associated with them.

Egypt s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is set to visit Baghdad on Wednesday to congratulate the Iraqi government on its victory over Daesh forces in Mosul, Egypt s foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu-Zeid said on Tuesday. Iraq declared victory in Mosul this week after a nearly nine-month battle that ravaged the city and took a heavy toll on residents and security forces.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said that projected time frame for establishing the electric train between Salam City and the New Administrative Capital should be reduced to be completed within two years only. He said that the project will provide a safe and modern means of transportation for commuters between Greater Cairo, and the New Administrative Capital, as well as facilitate the transport of goods and production materials to and from the cities and industrial areas located along the railway line.

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has received the final instalment of the first $4 billion tranche of a $12 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), state-run news agency MENA reported on Tuesday. The deposit follows the IMF executive board s approval of the first review of the loan, said MENA. According to an informed source at the CBE, the bank received the instalment on Tuesday. On Friday, the IMF s executive board approved the first review of a $12 billion loan to Egypt and has disbursed $1.25 billion, the final instalment of the first $4 billion tranche of the loan, the IMF said in a statement.