CAIRO: Index heavyweight Orascom Construction and other blue-chips dragged Egypt's benchmark index lower as investors unnerved by political concerns on the Korean peninsula and global economic woes dumped stocks. Orascom Construction (OCI) fell 2.3 percent, its biggest single-day decline since July 4. It rose 0.3 percent earlier in the day after posting better than expected third-quarter profit. OCI shares fell heavily towards the end of the session, mainly on profit taking, said Mohamed Kotb, director of asset management at Naeem Financial Investment. World stocks fell on Tuesday and the dollar rose across the board as tension in the Korean Peninsula prompted investors to trim risky assets, and the euro stayed under pressure as Ireland's debt crisis rages on. Egypt's main index slid 1.4 percent, its largest single day drop since Oct. 27, to close at 6,881 points. It rose above 7,000 points on Monday, its highest since May 10. Investment bank EFG-Hermes dipped 3.6 percent. Orascom Telecom posted its biggest single-day drop since Nov. 1 and fell 3.1 percent, ending a three-day rally. Traders said investors are booking profits on Orascom Telecom following a big rise after the firm sold its 50 percent stake in its Tunisian mobile operator for $1.2 billion. Shares in Talaat Moustafa Group (TMG), Egypt's biggest listed developer, slid 0.4 percent after a court prolonged a legal wrangle that has rattled property investors by saying the government must auction land previously sold directly to the firm. Maridive and Oil Services bucked the trend and gained 3.3 percent as the stock, seen by some analysts as relatively cheap, attracted investor appetite, Kotb said.
