Qatar’s Baladna buys more shares in Egyptian dairy peer Juhayna

In almost two years, Baladna has built a shareholding in Juhayna of more than 15%. Its latest purchase – of 600,000 shares on 26 June – took its stake from 10% to 15.03%. The shares cost E£7.4m ($239,000).

In a stock-exchange filing today (30 June), Baladna said it wanted to grow within Qatar and overseas.

“Investment decisions are based on very detailed analysis of the market,” the filing read. “[The] Egypt market, with a population [of] more than 100 million, is a large and promising food and beverage market. Being the market leader, Juhayna is expected to benefit most from the market growth with a strong distribution network.”

According to data from GlobalData, Just Food’s parent, Egypt’s market for dairy and soy food is forecast to be worth $5.07bn, up from $3.56bn in 2022.