Egypt stocks are seeing significant gains mid-Tuesday, the benchmark EGX30 index up 1.9 per cent at 5,634 points, some two hours into the trading session. Turnover has already reached LE330 million ($55 million), with Orascom Construction Industries and Orascom Telecom Holding being the most active shares, up 2.25 and 3 per cent, respectively. "Investors seem to have an open appetite for trading today, and I believe it is driven by the recent announcement of major business deals," says Ashraf Abdel Aziz, head of institution sales at Arabeya Online Securities. Recent days saw National Societe General Bank (NSGB) and investment bank EFG-Hermes both announce major acquisition deals. On Monday, oil giant BP said it would invest $10 billion in a new natural gas project on Egypt's Mediterranean coast, while a senior US official suggested the Obama administration was close to granting the new Egyptian government $1 billion in debt relief. Shares in NSGB gained 8.13 per cent by midday, while EFG-Hermes shares were up 2.5 per cent.
