CAIRO (AFP) – Ramadan tradition dictates that Egypt's fruit-sellers nickname their dates to reflect unofficial popularity ratings, but this year the global recession has forced down the price of the 'Obama'. Named after US President Barack Obama who chose Cairo to deliver a landmark speech to the world's Muslims in June, the popular date was expected to sell for 25 Egyptian pounds (around 4.5 dollars) a kilogram (2.2 pounds). "People can't afford dates this year, we had to bring the price down to 15 pounds (2.7 dollars)," said Mohammed, a fruit vendor in the bustling Sayyeda Zeinab neighbourhood. Emulating the...
