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Market Report: Stock prices slump on profit taking Bout of profit taking following Sunday's rally takes bite out of market as EGX 30 loses 1.3 per cent
Egypt's main EGX30 stock index fell by 1.3 per cent in Monday's trading session to alight at 3,634.77 on the back of a wave of profit taking following Sunday's rise. “Investors no longer have faith in regular trading,” market expert Issa Fathy told Ahram Online. “Now they're only relying on short-term speculation.” The broader-based EGX70 and EGX100 indices also registered losses for the day, dipping 2 and 1.6 per cent respectively. According to Fathy, most investors in the local market – both Egyptian and foreign – usually resort to selling when share prices increase, since most trading institutions are refraining from making new investments in Egypt until they see a degree of political stability. Of 167 stocks listed on the exchange, 26 rose for the day while 130 lost value, in a session that saw the lowest daily turnover – LE 87 million – since December 2004. “Daily turnover today appeared to hit a new low,” said Fathy. Telecoms was the only sector to record gains in Monday trading, with fixed-line monopoly Telecom Egypt (TE) ending up for the day by 0.6 per cent. Market blue chips, however, fared poorly for the most part, led by Commercial International Bank (CIB) and Orascom Construction Industries (OCI), which fell by 2 and 1.3 per cent respectively. Real estate stocks similarly suffered, with TMG, Palm Hills and SODIC all falling by 2, 2.6 and 3 per cent respectively. Financial service stocks tumbled as well, with EFG-Hermes and CI Capital shedding 1.6 and 2 per cent. "There's a question mark as to what will happen in Egypt," Arab Finance Brokerage's Osama Moura told Reuters. "Investors are reducing their stock holdings because they need the money and would rather wait to see what 2012 will bring."
