Market Report: Egypt high-cap activity nudges index into green

Bourse finishes up 0.3 per cent on the performances of just three heavyweight stocks as uncertainty grips the rest of the market

Egypt's Bourse battled against sluggish trade on Monday as sustained interest in high-caps helped the main index keep its head above water while lower-value shares tumbled into the red.
The benchmark EGX30 finished the four-hour session up 0.27 per cent at 4,311.9 points, marking the exchange's seventh consecutive day of gains.
But the performance of the broader EGX70, which tracks smaller, more speculator-friendly stocks and slipped 1.79 per cent, painted a different picture.
“The whole market was carried upwards by no more than five of its biggest stocks," says Ashraf Abdel Aziz, head of institutions sales at Arabeya Online Securities.
"Even when you look at the EGX30 you find that 10 shares gained while the rest dropped."
From the 179 stocks traded on Monday, more than 130 lost value and just 34 saw gains. Total turnover was LE308.7 million, a significant climb on
the previous day's thin stream of buys and sells.
Trade clustered in high-caps Orascom Construction Industries (OCI), Orascom Telecom and Commercial International Bank, which together made up almost LE130 million -- around 42 per cent -- of total activity.
“Those three stocks basically drove the index into the green, they also helped market turnover rise when compared to yesterday,” explained Abdel Aziz, attributing the increased activity to foreign investors targeting their "favourite shares".
Foreign investors share of trading jumped to 35 per cent after it slumped to 5 per cent on Sunday. The boost to turnover was pronounced, with foreigners contributing LE308m on Monday against LE187m the day before.
Despite high turnover for the select few, concrete gains were limited. OCI saw LE57 million in trade but finished up a meagre 0.03 per cent at LE228.78 per share.
“OCI is one of the best performing listed companies," said Abdel Aziz. "It has reported solid profits and is has a busy schedule of contracts and commitments.”
Similarly strong fundamentals helped Orascom Telecom (OT) gain 0.63 per cent despite poorly sourced rumours that one of its founders, Naguib Sawiris, had fled the country. Sawiris stepped down from heading the company in May following its acquisition by Russian giant VimpelCom.
A statement from OT to the stock exchange denied Sawiris had left Egypt. It was echoed by a similar release from Orascom Development Holding (ODH) confirming his sibling, Samih Sawiris, was also in the country.
In August, Samih was sentenced to two years in prison for manipulating OD's stock price and providing incorrect financial data. The firm later paid a $3.4m fine to scrap the prison sentence. Despite the confusion, ODH stocks failed to shift either way on Monday.
In the end, it was the smallest companies that felt the most pain, with East Delta Flour Mills tumbling 9.5 per cent and TransOcean Tours losing a further 6.7 per cent.