CAIRO: The number of active investors in the Egyptian bourse declined to just over 100,000 in 2011, a fall from 311,000 investors during 2005. The decline in participants in 2011 illustrates the deterioration of the Egyptian stock indexes. Many investors have declined to invest to mitigate losses. There are however 1.7 million investors who have codes in the index – allowing them to make transactions – but the number of active, code-bearing investors is between 80,000 and 100,000. The instability and insecurity both politically and economically is causing the vast majority of coded traders to refrain from trading. It is expected that the investors will stay away from the Egyptian Bourse during the next presidential elections, and will not resume trading until a new and stable government takes over in Egypt.
