Egypt stocks continued their sideways movement Wednesday as cross-trading and a retail sell-off pulled down the market. The main EGX30 index fell 0.45 percent to sit at 8,333 points while the broader EGX70 slid 0.84 percent and daily turnover hit LE1.1 billion. "The second half of the session witnessed a sell-off by retail investors reacting to the sideways movement of the past few sessions and seeking to cash in on profits towards the end of the trading week," Mohamed Radwan, head of equities at Pharos Holding, told Ahram Online. Six of October Development and Investment (SODIC), one of the country's largest property developers, saw its share price plunge 9.50 percent to LE24.21 while investment bank EFG-Hermes divested some 10 percent of its stake in the company. Retail stock Orascom Telecom Media and Technology Holding (OTMT) was the second most traded stock after SODIC, which hit LE227.8 million in turnover value, witnessing a 1.52 percent drop to trade at LE1.30 a share as retail investors reacted to the sell-off in the market, said Radwan. Institutional sellers also brought Global Telecom Holding, the index's second largest stock in terms of market cap, down 1.85 percent. Egyptians were net-buyers of the session, to the tune of LE105.8 million, while non-Arab foreign investors, who accounted for an unusually high 32 percent of market activity, were the primary net-sellers, at LE81.9 million. Palm Hills Development, Egypt's second largest real estate developer, saw its share price rise 0.23 percent to LE4.27 a share. US private equity firm Ripplewood said Wednesday that it had acquired a 2.3 percent stake in Palm Hills, with hopes to increase its stake in the future. Market bellwether Commercial International Bank (CIB) was in the green, gaining 0.43 percent to trade at LE37.54 a share. http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/100718.aspx
