Egyptian stocks slipped back into the red on Tuesday as the country's planning minister warned of a delay in signing a long-awaited $3.2 billion loan with the International Monetary Fund and worrying new central bank figures further jangled investor nerves. The benchmark EGX30 closed Tuesday down 0.97 per cent at 4,907 points, wiping out the previous day's marginal gains. From 173 listed stocks, 71 gained in value and 85 declined, and the rest remained unchanged. The broader EGX70 slid a marginal 0.02 per cent. The market is seeing a general slowdown due to the current political wrangling [in the run-up to presidential elections] and news of a delay in IMF funding. Egypt's central bank announced on Monday the country's foreign reserves had dropped a further $600 million to reach $15.12 billion. Though the fall was smaller than in previous months, economists still expressed worry as the figure crept ever nearer the minimum needed to cover two months of vital imports. The IMF has stipulated that the government must first sell its reform plans to the country's political forces before it agrees to grant a loan. The global body also wants Egypt to line up billions of dollars in additional loans from other international donors. Turnover was just over LE377 million ($61.9 million) with over a quarter of the day's trade focused on a tug-of-war between two high-cap stocks in the banking and telecoms sectors. The Commercial International Bank (CIB), whose performance typically reflects foreign sentiment, bore the brunt as investors staged sell-offs to profit from Monday's rally, sparked by rumours the bank was planning a capital increase. Egyptian stocks slipped back into the red on Tuesday as the country's planning minister warned of a delay in signing a long-awaited $3.2 billion loan with the International Monetary Fund and worrying new central bank figures further jangled investor nerves. The benchmark EGX30 closed Tuesday down 0.97 per cent at 4,907 points, wiping out the previous day's marginal gains. From 173 listed stocks, 71 gained in value and 85 declined, and the rest remained unchanged. The broader EGX70 slid a marginal 0.02 per cent. The market is seeing a general slowdown due to the current political wrangling [in the run-up to presidential elections] and news of a delay in IMF funding. Egypt's central bank announced on Monday the country's foreign reserves had dropped a further $600 million to reach $15.12 billion. Though the fall was smaller than in previous months, economists still expressed worry as the figure crept ever nearer the minimum needed to cover two months of vital imports. The IMF has stipulated that the government must first sell its reform plans to the country's political forces before it agrees to grant a loan. The global body also wants Egypt to line up billions of dollars in additional loans from other international donors. Turnover was just over LE377 million ($61.9 million) with over a quarter of the day's trade focused on a tug-of-war between two high-cap stocks in the banking and telecoms sectors. The Commercial International Bank (CIB), whose performance typically reflects foreign sentiment, bore the brunt as investors staged sell-offs to profit from Monday's rally, sparked by rumours the bank was planning a capital increase.
