CAIRO - Driven by Arab buying, Egypt's main index rose on Tuesday for the fourth day in a row, traders said. Arabs made net purchses worth LE8.4 million ($1.4 million). Locals and non-Arabs made net sell-offs worth LE2.8 million and LE5.6 million respectively, according to Bourse data. The country's benchmark index EGX 30 added 0.2 per cent to 5,438.78 points. The broader index EGX 70 rose slightly by 0.08 to 630.71 points. Volume exceeded LE492 million, according to Bourse data. Meanwhile, world stocks steadied below this week's four and half month high. The euro fell as worries about further monetary tightening in China and uncertainty over the eurozone and US economic outlook made investors cautious, Reuters reported. Speculation about a possible rate rise in China this weekend curbed a pick-up in demand for risky assets since last week as did a Moody's report saying the scale of problem loans at local governments in China may be much bigger than previously thought. In the eurozone, a survey showed growth in the region's dominant service sector slowed for a third straight month in June, and by more than an initial estimate, with sluggish new orders dimming the outlook. Investors were also waiting to see more evidence the U.S. economic recovery is gaining momentum before taking on more risks, especially after world stocks, measured by MSCI, posted their best weekly gain in a year last week. "Part of the reason for the rally last week was better-than-expected data out of the United States. The markets want to see whether that will continue and whether the soft patch has come to an end," said Jeremy Batstone-Carr, a strategist at Charles Stanley. "There is still plenty of reason for most investors to be strategically cautious." The MSCI world equity index was down slightly on the day. The index has risen almost 5 percent since January. European stocks rose 0.1 per cent while emerging stocks briefly hit a one-month high. US stock futures pointed to a slightly firmer open on Wall Street, which reopens later after the Independence Day holiday on Monday.
