The makret continues to suffer heavy losses that reached its peak on Tuesday when the CASE 30 slid by around 11 per cent during trading hours. Many indices closed the week (ending 9 March) on record lows, with the trading of many shares suspended to prevent them falling below 10 per cent loss floor. Total market turnover came in at a low LE4.578 billion. VODAFONE EGYPT: A consortium of four local and international banks has extended an LE1.6 billion credit facility to the GSM operator. Vodafone selected the consortium, which includes Banque Misr, CIB, NSGB and HSBC, from among several that had offered Vodafone credit since June. The seven-year loan carries an interest rate of 10.5-11 per cent. According to company officials the money will be used to fund future financing plans and repay LE650 million of the LE2.4 billion loan Vodafone acquired in September. The company has yet to fully pay the fee it contracted in acquiring the 1,800 mega hertz frequency bought from NTRA . TELECOM EGYPT: TE dropped 4.47 per cent to close at LE17.52, with the continuing vagueness about its intention to bid for Egypt's third mobile licence contributing to the downward pressure. Minister of Communication and Information Technology Tareq Kamel said last week that TE already owns 25 per cent of Vodafone Egypt, which means that it already has a foot in the mobile market. Kamel also noted that were TE to enter a consortium with a 51 per cent stake it will be unlikely to command more than a 20 per cent share of the market, with all the risks involved. The final decision on any bid will be made by the Ministry of Finance, which owns 80 per cent of Telecom Egypt. If TE wins a licence it will have to sell its stake in Vodafone Egypt which, at current prices, is worth LE5 billion. EFG-HERMES HOLDING continued its downward slide, losing 14.6 per cent to close at LE133.73. The week's transactions came in at LE1.2 billion, making its CASE's most actively traded stock. The subscription period for the second tranche of its capital increase has yet to open. The 16 million shares offered as part of the first tranche began to be traded on Thursday. ORASCOM TELECOM: Holders of OT bonds agreed to the company's decision to repay LE700 million and $150 million before the maturation date after OTH announced it would compensate bond holders for the early redemption by paying 1.5 per cent above par value. The move is part of the company's restructuring of its debt portfolio in preparation for receipt of a $2 billion syndicated loan. OT slipped 4.07 per cent this week to close at LE327.59 following trading worth LE153.89 million. ORASCOM HOTEL AND DEVELOPMENT released its results for 2005, posting a 27 per cent increase in revenues to LE676.1 million. According to a report by HC, hotel operations are the company's cash generator, accounting for 54.6 per cent of sales. Occupancy rates remained constant at 64 per cent. Real estate operations, though, made considerable advances, growing by 64 per cent to reach LE225.3 million, or 33 per cent of total revenues. The improvements followed an increase in the number of units sold to 435, up from 338 on the previous financial year, while average selling prices increased by 82 per cent. OHD shares lost 1.89 points to close at LE37.28. Compiled by: Sherine Abdel-Razek
