Egypt's main index slipped on Monday as locals were affected by a bearish sentiment, traders said. Locals made net sell-offs worth LE5.2 million ($901,000), they added. Arab and non-Arab investors made net purchases worth LE3.3 million and LE1.9 million respectively. The North African country's benchmark index EGX 30 slipped by 0.39 per cent to 6,735.82 points. The EGX 70, which measures 70 of the country's small and mid caps, shed 0.31 per cent to 732.75 points. Volume hit LE647 million, according to the Egyptian Exchange. Orascom Construction Industries fell by 0.07 per cent to LE266.55 per share. Orascom Telecom, the largest Arab mobile operator by subscribers, shed 0.47 per cent to LE4.2 per share. Commercial International Bank (CIB) inched slipped by 0.52 per cent to LE41.78 per share. Meanwhile, the euro fell,and the dollar rebounded, helped by a bout of short covering, concern about the eurozone, according to Reuters. The dollar index was up 0.32 per cent at 79.628, with the greenback pulling away from a three-week low against the yen. As the dollar had shed 1.5 per cent against the yen on Friday and more than one per cent against a basket of currencies, it had scope for a bounce in thin volumes, analysts said. The Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) world equity index was down 0.2 per cent at 321.43, with Asian shares as steady as those in Europe. Japan's Nikkei slipped. But overseas fund operators and Japanese retail investors were looking to buy on dips, limiting losses for the Nikkei, analysts said. Tokyo stocks traded in a narrow range, with volume falling to the lowest since late October, as investors took a wait-and-see stance amid a lack of fresh market incentives, analysts said. Gold held near its highest since mid-November as speculation that US authorities will have to further extend monetary easing and concerns over eurozone debt boosted interest in the metal as a haven from risk. Spot gold was bid at $1,413.30 an ounce at 10:43 GMT, against $1,414.35 late in New York on Friday. US gold futures for December delivery rose $8.40 an ounce to $1,413.80.
