CAIRO: Egypt s main index ended 0.5 percent lower, pushed down by Orascom Telecom (OT) following negative news from Algeria and a broad late session selloff. At the end of the session, the whole market took a decent beating, said Karim Hosny from Pharos Securities. Most of the 30 constituents ended in the red. Investment bank EFG-Hermes lost 2.5 percent and EgyptKuwait Holding dipped 1.8 percent. Housing stocks were also among leading decliners, with Talaat Moustafa down 1.7 percent, Nasr City Housing shedding 2.7 percent and Palm Hills Developments dipping 2.2 percent. Orascom Telecom shed 1.7 percent after it said it had lost an appeal against its Algeria tax bill. It s a story by itself. Each piece of news is a trading opportunity, Hosny said, referring to Orascom s ongoing disputes in Algeria and Egypt. It is going to be pressured when the extra shares enter the market. OT raised $790 million in a rights issue that created more than 4 billion new shares. The share price was altered last month but the shares are due to begin trading on March 16, one day after the firm posts its fourth quarter results. Hosny said the index would likely track sideways in low volumes in the next week, barring major news on blue chip stocks. It seems we are getting into an annoying sideways range, he said. -Reuters
