CAIRO: Egypt s two main indexes dipped sharply lower on Wednesday, with most blue-chip firms declining as foreign investors retreated amid continuing global financial upheaval. The benchmark CASE 30 fell 2.68 percent to 6,950.14 points, while the Hermes index lost 2.29 percent to 624.79 points. The broader CIBC index was barely higher at 365.78 points. Selling pressures are coming from mainly foreign institutions...which is affecting mostly the blue-chips, said Mohamed Abdel Aziz, head of international sales at Delta Rasmala Securities. Foreign investors were net sellers of Egyptian shares by more than LE 143 million ($26 million). Orascom Telecom, the largest Arab mobile operator by subscribers, lost 6.01 percent to LE 39.25, and investment bank EFG-Hermes fell 5.58 percent to LE 33.36. Traders said volumes were muted ahead of holidays at the end of Ramadan and while global markets remained volatile. The Cairo indexes have tracked global markets in recent weeks, as tumult on Wall Street wracked investor confidence and a US government bailout plan provided short-term positive momentum. What we see right now has nothing to do with fundamentals, said Wafik Dawood from Naeem Brokerage. Orascom Construction Industries ended down 0.42 percent at LE 315. Investment bank Credit Suisse replaced Orascom Telecom with OCI in its Europe, Middle East and Africa stock focus list on Tuesday, and said the construction firm was its top pick in Egypt. OCI also said it had signed an agreement with Japanese manufacturer Babcock-Hitachi to design and build steam-powered electricity generators. Credit Suisse analyst Hans Zayed said Orascom Construction was a major beneficiary of $2.2 trillion Gulf Cooperation Council infrastructure spending plans, and could achieve EBITDA margins of 85 percent to 90 percent in its fertilizer division. Fertilizer prices have risen sharply this year, and are expected to remain buoyant as gas prices globally show no sign of deflating. Another fertilizer maker, Egyptian Chemical Industries (Kima) was suspended from trading until it provides financial statements for the year ended June 30, the stock exchange said in a statement on its website. Shares in the state-owed firm have fallen more than 70 percent since early April, and were last traded at LE 63.97.
