Orascom TMT Investments Chairman Naguib Sawiris discusses why he invested a huge portion of his welath in bullion and gold mining companies.
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Billionaire Naguib Sawiris On Why He Invested In Gold Mining Companies
FBNInterview with Naguib Sawiris Transcript
Welcome back a very special interview this weekend I’m speaking with Orascom at TNT INVESTMENTS CHAIRMAN Naguib Sawiris and we were just speaking moments ago about the corruption crackdown in Saudi Arabia and all that’s happening in the Middle East. How is that affecting your investment strategy overall. Well I’m not in Saudi Arabia obviously but I need all of the above whether it’s North Korea Iran you know the uncertainty of trying to trade. How are you investing. No it’s pushed me to be more bullish on gold you know I mean I’ve invested in gold mining shares you know I’m the largest shareholder in two of the world’s biggest mining companies in Africa and Australia. And the reason why I saw that look this is all these crises is they might just go out of context and you know people always go to gold for safety.
And also it’s an anti inflationary inflationary place to put your asset you know because it was misconceived by me when people said I changed my network into having the world know it’s I invested in gold mining companies because of the cost that owns 30 or 40 percent discount when you mining yourself you know versus the international price so there’s a cushion there. Secondly you can begin the business aspect. They found that mining companies for example don’t have a business men on their boards. They’re usually either miners or geologists or bankers. That isn’t true there’s no business men on any boards so when you come as a businessman you start to think in a business way and you’ve given them some.
Every time I give suggestions on the board they looked at me and said Well yeah you’re right actually yes. I mean it would look like what it’s like obvious you know it’s like investments and exploration. All these companies are various they don’t take risks on exploration. We talk a lot. I pushed the companies what I’m a shareholder in to take risk and explore exploration in terms of copper exploration where copper and gold copper and gold. And what do you think that says in terms of the global economy in terms of copper and gold and the price of those copper has a big potential.
Because it’s being India it has a lot of industrial uses and cars and homes and everywhere and gold you know the demand in China and India you know and you know they’re all going to wear something and go all the time. And if you look at the big findings in the last three four years there hasn’t been really big findings in gold or copper anywhere in the world significant ones which means that I think that down the road we will have some less you know less offerings and that means higher prices you know so so your investments are largely in these related mining companies. What about stocks. Tell me weight where you see the start of summer.
I’m worried now because I mean I think there’s every few years there’s a big correction that happens you know. So I think we were bound to see in the near future a correction a correction in the U.S. globally where emerging markets are having a tough time but there’s a lot of conversation that emerging markets is the place to be.
You bought up China in some places like Egypt.
Now is it because Egypt is on the right track now. So I would urge people to invest in Egypt now because we’ve done all the right things with the IMF. We followed the rules we didn’t try to argue too much you know and we’ve removed all the subsidies we have. So I think and foreign investment is coming back. The foreign currency issue has been eliminated so we have 45 billion over reserves right now you can easily come in and go out with your investments. So Egypt is a good place to do China as I said I wouldn’t say we didn’t even have a choice to go in the best there.
