CAIRO - Egyptian stocks were slightly high on Wednesday on non-Arab buying, traders said. Non-Arab investors made net purchases worth LELE2.8 million ($470,000) amid low volumes, they added. Locals and Arabs made net sell-offs worth LE1 million and LE1.8 million, according to Bourse data. Volume exceeded LE775.4 million, according to Bourse data. The country's benchmark index EGX 30 added 0.28 per cent to 5,436.5 points. The broader indexes EGX 70 and EGX 100 were also in the black, gained 0.14 and 0.23 per cent to 649.04 and 1,000.34 points respectively. Egypt's heavyweight Commercial International Bank (CIB) slipped 0.66 per cent to LE30.26 per share. EFG-Hermes, the country's biggest investment bank by market value, fell by 1.49 per cent to LE20.56 per share. Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) rose by 1.2 per cent to LE272.26 per share. Orascom Telecom, the largest Arab mobile operator by subscribers, slipped by 0.24 per cent LE4.23 per share. Abraaj Capital Ltd., the Dubai-based private equity company managing about $6.2 billion, is in talks with Citadel Capital to buy a stake in the Egyptian firm, two people with knowledge of the talks told Bloomberg. Abraaj hasn't made an official offer to Cairo-based Citadel Capital yet, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private. Citadel Capital Chairman Ahmed Heikal declined to comment when contacted by Bloomberg News yesterday. Abraaj and investors such as Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris have said a wave of popular uprisings that has swept the Middle East this year will help create investment opportunities and stronger economic growth prospects in the long term. The revolts have toppled the presidents of Egypt and Tunisia and spread to countries including Yemen, Syria, Libya and Bahrain. Citadel has investments in 15 industries such as mining, energy, cement, transportation and retail, according to its website. The company said on May 31 it made a consolidated loss of $241.7 million in 2010 because two oil exploration investments were “underperforming.”
