Nom has spoken about the problem that faces the average Egyptian. From one of Nom’s comments:
40% of the people in Egypt live on less than $2/day.
Whatever the persuasion of the protest leaders, they may find they have started something of which they are no longer entirely in control.
It’s about the food. It’s not only in Egypt, but in other Middle Eastern countries.
As long as Egypt’s leadership uncertainty persists, market uncertainty will prevail as well. This means flight to safety patterns will continue if the situation deteriorates, but now that the initial shock is over, sideways is probably the most likely scenario.
Traders have been eager for a correction to buy lower, but it’s too early to play that game. Nobody wants to buy on the first or second day down, so many traders seem willing to move to the sidelines and let the story play out over the next several days.
It is food inflation that is ultimately breaking the the back of the Mubarak regime. Traders on Friday noted that Fitch, in downgrading Egypt’s outlook to negative, specifically cited the high food inflation, which is running at about 17 percent a year. Staples like meat, sugar and vegetables have been climbing out of the reach of the ordinary Egyptian for a year.
via CNBC Trader Talk Blog. Worry about the Suez Canal being shut down. The world moves 7% of it’s total commodities through that one area daily. We might just be looking at the same difficulties that the ordinary Egyptian has faced for a year.
Mubarak must go. It is unfortunate that the Muslim Brotherhood and others will take advantage of this situation. We would prefer to see democracy reign. Is it too late?
Obama is squeezing Mubarak to the point of leaving him with no option but to capitulate to the protesting crowds — with the Muslim Brotherhood only too happy to pick up the pieces.
Mohamed Ghanem, one of the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, calls Egypt to stop pumping gas to Israel and prepare the Egyptian army for a war with it’s eastern neighbor.
Many in Egypt question ElBaradei’s ability to take the reigns.
