Egypt's main index was flat on Monday as big caps ended mixed, traders said. Non-Arabs made net sell-offs worth LE86 million ($15.2 million). Egyptian and Arab investors made net purchases worth LE29.4 million and LE56.7 million respectively, they added. The North African country's main index EGX 30 fell by a hair 0.01 per cent, ending the day's trading at 6,300.32 points. The EGX 70 index, which measures 70 of the country's small and mid caps, shed 0.38 per cent to 544.83 points. Volume hit LE734.6 million, according to the Egyptian Exchange. Orascom Construction Industries, Egypt's largest builder by market value, added 0.55 per cent to LE226.8 per share. Orascom Telecom, the largest Arab mobile operator by subscribers, shed 1.78 per cent, closing at LE5.51 per share. EFG-Hermes, the country's largest investment bank by market value, added 0.78 per cent to LE29.64 per share. In a related event, the average yield on Egyptian 182-day treasury bills rose a fraction to 10.572 per cent at an auction on Sunday from 10.529 per cent at last week's auction, Reuters reported. The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) accepted bids worth LE1 billion, the same amount it was seeking. It accepted bids at rates between 10.3 and 10.6 per cent compared to a range of 10.3 to 10.62 per cent at the previous auction. Globally, the euro rose as an improvement in sentiment toward riskier assets hit the dollar and prompted a bout of short-covering in the single European currency, lifting it further away from a recent four-year low. But analysts said the recovery in the euro was unlikely to push it out of its downtrend, as the structural problems in the eurozone which have plagued the currency had not altered. "We've seen a good session for equities. This looks to be a pro-risk move, driven by the higher-yielding currencies such as the Aussie. Fundamentally, nothing has changed for the euro," said Kenneth Broux, a market economist at Lloyds Banking Group. The euro was up around one per cent versus the dollar at $1.2245 at 09:40 GMT, just off best levels of the day. The euro has lost 15 percent against the dollar this year but gained 1.6 percent last week as it pulled up from a four-year low at $1.1876. World stocks headed for a fourth straight day of gains as investors banked on global economic recovery to trump concerns such as eurozone sovereign debt in providing a positive backdrop for corporate earnings. MSCI's main emerging market stock index, for example, has gained more than nine per cent since hitting a year low on May 25. Part of the rally is due to the year's sell off -- world stocks are down six per cent year to day and 8.2 per cent for the second quarter. But it is also the result of a belief among many investors that the underlying economic backdrop is relatively positive. China, in particular, is seen as pulling world recovery forward, with the United States following. "What is helping the market is the notion that a double dip recession is not a big risk," said Bernard McAlinden, investment strategist at NCB Stockbrokers in Dublin. "I think that is what the markets are latching onto."
