The week ending 30 March saw comparatively high levels of demand for attractively priced small caps. Institutional investors, though, appear to be holding back in anticipation of forthcoming IPOs, including Eastern Company and paint producer Pachin. Foreign investors -- mainly Arab -- continued to be net sellers as they attempt to claw back some of the losses incurred on regional markets during the mid-March crash. The week's turnover came in at LE4.7 billion, while the CASE30 index closed at 6767 points, four per cent higher than at the beginning of the year and 1.4 per cent higher than the previous week. Analysts expect the market to continue to zigzag until mid-April, after which they predict an upward swing. ORASCOM TELECOM HOLDING (OTH): 2005 fiscal year results saw OTH's net profits grow by 93 per cent to LE3.9 billion compared to a net income of LE2.2 billion in 2004. The company's ambitious expansion was reflected in a 58.3 per cent increase in total assets. In 2005 OTH increased its stake in networks in Algeria, Tunisia and Iraq and entered the Bangladeshi market. The increase in total assets was financed mainly through debt, which increased by 120 per cent to LE18.7 billion in 2005. The company announced the signing of a five- year secured debt facility worth $2 billion, provided by a consortium of four international banks: ABN Amro, Citigroup, Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank. The new debt facility will be used to restructure existing loans and consolidate them in a single package. OTH came second in the week's volume of trading, recording transactions of LE461.67 million, during which it lost 3.81 per cent to close at LE315.71. EFG-HERMES HOLDING was once again the most actively traded stock of the week with a turnover of LE1,405.75 million. The company's move to buy back treasury stocks helped boost its share price. It ended at LE66.95, 14.6 per cent higher than the previous week. ORASCOM CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRIES (OCI): With transactions worth LE343.72 million, OCI became this week's third most traded stock. The company is expected to release its 2005 results in a matter of days, and it is anticipated that they will show a marked improvement on last year, a result of the expansion of OCI's construction and cement operations and its move into the gas sector. OCI's nine months results came in at LE1.247 billion, 54.3 per cent higher than the corresponding period in 2004. While HC Securities put the company's fair price at LE328, OCI ended the week well below, at LE235.37. AL-WATANY BANK (AWB): AWB's 2005 results saw an increase in net profits from LE13.9 million in 2004 to LE89.7 million. The bank announced that the last tranche of its capital increase was fully subscribed and that the allocation rate will be three per cent. The bank increased its capital by LE500 million at a par value of LE15.25. The bank's shares ended the week at LE22.3. SIDI KRIR FOR PETROCHEMICALS' (SIDPEC) general assembly shed light on the underlying reasons for the disappointing 2.2 per cent increase in annual revenues during 2005 to reach LE1.7 billion. SIDPEC's management cited a slight decline in production accompanied by an increase in global prices of polyethylene as being behind the sluggish growth. The decline in production came as a result of a major maintenance operation which caused production to stop for one month. SIDPEC now has a new board of directors. It gained 3.71 per cent over the week to close at LE85.77. Compiled by: Sherine Abdel-Razek
