CAIRO: Egyptian shares rose on Tuesday for the fourth straight session as investors bet share prices were too low given earnings expectations, traders said. Optimism and confidence are gradually returning, said Hashem Ghoneim of Pyramids Capital. I think we had hit a bottom. Valuations cannot get cheaper; shares are virtually free. Shares in regional telecom operator Orascom Telecom were the day s most heavily traded by value. The stock, which Ghoneim said was undervalued, gained 4.85 percent to LE 18.80 ($3.32) per share. Shares in Talaat Moustafa Group, Egypt s largest real estate developer by market value, gained 2.2 percent to LE 2.79 per share after the company reported fourth-quarter profit of LE 100 million. Ghabbour Auto, Egypt s largest publicly traded car assembly and retail company, saw its net profit for 2008 decline 4 percent to LE 415.9 million. The company s shares ended almost flat at LE 9.02 per share. Egyptian investors, who accounted for around 75 percent of the day s turnover, were the only net buyers by LE 23.8 million. The benchmark EGX 30 index rose 1.12 percent to 3,627.77 points, while the rival Hermes rose 1.07 percent to 345.74 points. The broader EGX 70 edged up 0.36 percent to 444.44 points. -Reuters
