Uprising in Egypt unsettles global markets

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/163026.html

Debt agency Moody's has cut its credit rating for Egypt, making it more costly for the Egyptian government to borrow.

Concerns about the possible closure of the Suez Canal, seen by economists as a chokepoint for global trade, is also pushing up commodity prices amid fears that supplies will be disrupted. Amid all this, the US Secretary of State had this to say:

The hesitance is no surprise -- considering the massive American business interests at stake in Mubarak's Egypt. The US sends nearly one and a half billion dollars in military aid to Egypt each year -- much of which comes back to American corporations -- which sell weapons and maintenance services to the Egyptian military.

Western oil companies have been a major presence in Egypt for decades -- drilling for oil and gas and making billions over the decades of Mubarek's rule.

Going strictly by the corporate bottom line - the Mubarek Presidency has been a profitable one for American and Western multinational corporations. Experts that Press TV has spoken to - however - are not bullish about the prospects of those corporations when the subject turns to Mubarak's replacement.

Sara Flounders - Co-Director of the International Action Center - says that there will likely be a harsh new reality for all Western companies doing business in Egypt - no matter who the new president turns out to be.

Many experts speculate that Mubarak's reign will end soon. When and if Mubarek heads out the door - he will take with him the cozy relationships he had with Western multinationals - and the massive profit margins many of them have enjoyed. According to Flounders - whoever steps into the power vacuum won't have much tolerance for Western interests.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up slightly on Monday - but not enough to recover from its plummet last Friday as investors ran to safer stocks. What will happen to investments - however - will continue to be closely tied with what happens on the ground in Cairo.