Driven by non-Arab buying, Egyptian indexes rose on Monday, traders said. NonArab investors made net purchases worth LE16 million ($2.8 million), they added. Egyptian and Arab investors made net sell-offs worth LE13 million and 2.8 million respectively. The North African country's main index EGX 30 gained 15 points, or 0.25 per cent, ending the day's trading at 5,989.73 points. The EGX 70 index, which measures 70 of the country's small and mid caps, added 0.25 per cent to 585.92 points. Orascom Telecom, the largest Arab mobile operator by subscribers, shed 0.21 per cent to LE4.85 per share. Orascom Construction Industries added 0.67 per cent to LE229.33 per share. EFG-Hermes, Egypt's largest investment bank by market value rose by 0.44 per cent, closing at LE27.51 per share. Globally, stocks slipped and investors briefly shunned the euro after Moody's cut the credit rating of Ireland, slightly unsettling markets already worried about a slowdown in the pace of US economic recovery. News the International Monetary Fund and the European Union suspended a review of Hungary's funding programme, meaning it will not have access to remaining funds in its $25.1 billion loan package, further added to market concerns. World stocks as measured by the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) fell 0.2 per cent, while its emerging market counterpart lost 0.5 per cent. In Europe, the FTSEurofirst 300 index shed 0.2 per cent. Austrian banks, given their exposure to Hungary, were among the biggest losers with Erste group bank down more than two per cent. Also under pressure, BP shares shed 3.5 per cent on concerns over seepage detected near the company's damaged well in the Gulf of Mexico. "Investors are trying to assess the degree of slowdown in the recovery that we have seen over the last 12 months," said Keith Bowman, analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. "The equity market has become extremely data-sensitive and every economic release will be looked at very closely. The market is likely to stay very volatile." Sentiment for the euro was dented after Moody's cut the credit rating for Ireland by one notch to Aa2, although the fact that it changed the outlook to stable helped take the sting out of the downgrade. Traders also said the Irish downgrade did not come as a surprise given Moody's had a negative outlook on Ireland but the timing did briefly unsettle markets. The euro fell to a session low at around $1.2870 in the wake of Moody's move, but swiftly recovered to $1.2967, up 0.3 per cent on the day. Against the yen, the single currency gained 0.6 per cent to 112.64. Near-term support for the euro is seen around the $1.2850 area, the 50 percent retracement of the euro's fall from a high near $1.3820 on March 17 to a four-year low of $1.1876 hit in early June. "The impact of the Ireland downgrade was muted as Moody's kept a stable outlook," said Manuel Oliveri, currency strategist at UBS. Demand for safe-haven government bonds were underpinned by weakness in equity markets, helping keep yields near recent lows.
