Egypt’s Eastern Company listed 4.5% of shares on stock market
The Eastern Company’s public offering, which resulted in Saudi investors buying 25% of the listing worth $23 million, raises questions about illicit profits within the government.
CAIRO — Member of parliament Haitham al-Hariri submitted March 12 a briefing request to Minister of Public Business Hisham Tawfik on his Feb. 28 listing of 4.5% of Egypt’s state-owned Eastern Company on the Egyptian Exchange. Tawfik has yet to respond.
The Eastern Company is Egypt’s top tobacco-maker and the second-largest source of revenue for the state budget after the Suez Canal Company. The company’s revenues are estimated at 55 billion Egyptian pounds ($3.17 billion) for fiscal year 2019.
