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Egyptian billionaire businessman Naguib Sawiris has urged the Egyptian government to stockpile and purchase extra quantities of wheat in view of the continuing Russia-Ukraine crisis.
His suggestion comes as a warning to Egypt’s government and the country’s Ministry of Supply, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which marks one of Europe’s biggest security crises in decades, might cause prices of commodities such as crude oil, wheat and soybeans to reach all-time highs.
In a tweet to the minister of supply, the billionaire said it was critical for the ministry to stockpile wheat, especially because bread is a key staple for Egyptians.
He added that Russia and Ukraine contribute 30 percent of global wheat output and that Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine will cause the commodity’s price to skyrocket in the near future.
“We must hurry to buy and store wheat before the Ukraine-Russia war, they produce 30-percent of the world’s wheat production, and if a war breaks out, all of this will not be available, and the prices will be high,” Sawiris stated in the tweet.
Wheat prices have risen by more than 5.7 percent since the news of the crisis surfaced this morning, while soybean prices have risen by more than 3.2 percent.
On the precious metals sector, particularly gold, the price of the metal surged beyond $1,970 an ounce on Thursday, a level not seen since September 2020, as safe-haven demand for the commodity soared following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s commencement of a military action in Ukraine.
The wealthy businessman, who has a substantial fraction of his wealth in gold, stands to gain from the increase in the price of the yellow metal.
The latest military action in Ukraine, and the resulting drop in the value of financial assets throughout the world, corresponds to an earlier forecast made by Sawiris three months ago.
In his speech, the billionaire cautioned investors that an asset value bubble is emerging on the horizon, which is being fuelled by government stimulus spending and quantitative easing by central banks throughout the world to cushion the impact of the epidemic on the economy.
