\u201cI used to stay here until 2am,\u201d the 63-year-old told AFP<\/em>, tapping his tiles as the street went dark.<\/p>\n \u201cNow I\u2019m home by 11 at most, just watching the news. This is not the Cairo we know.\u201d<\/p>\n The month-long order instituted last week shutters shops at 9pm on weekdays and 10pm on weekends, with a brief extension to 11pm expected for the Coptic Easter holidays.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a jarring shift for nocturnal Cairenes.<\/p>\n Thursday nights usually buzz with families strolling between storefronts, teenagers lingering over ice cream and music spilling out of cafes, well into the early hours of the morning.<\/p>\n Now each evening collapses into a final frantic hour of last-minute shopping before fluorescent lights flicker out and shutters rattle down.<\/p>\n Police patrols ensure compliance and soon, only delivery scooters remain, zig-zagging through the dark.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is usually when work starts,\u201d shopworker Ali Haggag said, standing outside his suddenly quiet clothing store.<\/p>\n The city once famed for never sleeping now \u201cfeels like Covid again\u201d, he added, recalling the 2020 lockdowns<\/a> that emptied its streets.<\/p>\n Well-to-do Cairenes have flocked to Nileside restaurants and international hotels, exempt from the order as tourism establishments.<\/p>\n But small businesses are already feeling the squeeze. Haggag estimates his shop has lost more than half its revenue in a matter of days.<\/p>\n Officials say the decision was unavoidable, given the country\u2019s heavy reliance on imported fuel.<\/p>\n Global energy prices have surged since the US and Israeli war on Iran began in late February.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly has said Egypt\u2019s monthly energy import bill more than doubled between January and March to $2.5 billion.<\/p>\n Around 60 per cent of the country\u2019s $20 billion annual oil budget goes toward powering the grid.<\/p>\n In recent weeks, the government has introduced what it calls \u201cexceptional\u201d measures, including hiking fuel prices, slowing state projects, enacting remote work on Sundays and dimming streetlights.<\/p>\n Critics say early closures are disproportionately affecting the informal economy, which accounts for some two-thirds of all jobs.<\/p>\n \u201cMillions of small businesses depend on evening foot traffic,\u201d economist Wael el-Nahas told AFP<\/em>. \u201cCutting those hours means cutting incomes.\u201d<\/p>\n Already the pound has shed some 15pc of its value since the war began, soaring to a record high of 54.3 to the dollar, while inflation hit 13.6pc in March.<\/p>\n At another downtown cafe, an owner said staff now rotate shifts. \u201cHalf the workers work one day and stay home the next,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Still, some shopkeepers remain optimistic. Essam Farid, 67, shrugged: \u201cPeople will adapt.\u201d Some coffee shops have already implemented an old COVID-era tactic: turn down the lights, pull the shutters halfway, then keep admitting customers while a kid on the corner keeps watch for the police.<\/p>\n But the shake-up has already rocked two major industries: cinema and tourism.<\/p>\n Film producer Gaby Khoury said cinemas are losing more than 60pc of their revenues.<\/p>\n \u201cMost box-office income comes from 9:00 pm and midnight screenings,\u201d he told AFP<\/em>. \u201cThis is catastrophic.\u201d Several film releases have been postponed, while some productions have been delayed indefinitely, he added.<\/p>\n Tourism, a crucial source of foreign currency, also fears a heavy setback.<\/p>\n While resort hubs like Luxor and Aswan are exempted, historic attractions in Cairo such as the centuries-old Khan el? Khalili bazaar are not.<\/p>\n By 9pm, shop owners stack their goods, turn off display lights and pull down metal shutters, even as tourists continue to wander the alleyways.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s almost 8pm now and tourists are still arriving,\u201d Ahmed Ali, a shopkeeper, told AFP.<\/em> \u201cHow can you expect me to close at nine? Will tourists be able to leave in just one hour? It\u2019s unreasonable.\u201d \u201cTourists, especially Arabs, feed off the city\u2019s energy,\u201d a tourism official told AFP<\/em>, speaking on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen Egyptians go home early, the vibe disappears and tourists will start looking elsewhere. \u201c<\/p>\n![\"Shops](\"https:\/\/i.dawn.com\/primary\/2026\/04\/06100514ef8e7c5.webp\")
<\/div><\/a>Cutting incomes<\/h2>\n
![\"An](\"https:\/\/i.dawn.com\/primary\/2026\/04\/061013433d228ed.webp\")
<\/div><\/a>\u2018Vibe disappears\u2019<\/h2>\n