Cairo stocks end week in record volume on signs of dollar inflows
Egypt’s stock market jumped in record volume on Thursday triggered by signs that hard currency was flowing into the country following last week’s currency devaluation.
Main index, EGX30 climbed 4.52 percent, to 10688.16 points, bringing its gains since the currency was floated last Thursday to 25 percent.
Other indices; EGX50 EWI index also soared 4.88 percent, to 1613.49 points; EGX20 added 4.91 percent, to 10124.03 points.
Mid- and small-cap index EGX70 gained 3.38 percent, to 403.51 points. Price index, EGX100 was up by its 5 percent limit two minutes before the close, causing trade to be suspended, to close at 980.95 points.
Market Cap
Market capitalisation posted gains worth 18.68 billion Egyptian pounds (around $ 1.1 billion), to record 519.458 billion pounds during the closing session of Thursday.
Turnovers doubled
The bourse’s trading volume 797.653 million securities, with turnovers, closing at 2.215 billion pounds, exchanged through 48,152 transactions.
Also during the closing session, 194 listed securities have been traded in, 10 declined, 166 advanced; while 13 kept their previous levels.
Investors’ Activities
Exchange data showed foreign investors were again heavy net buyers of Egyptian stocks and, after sliding earlier this week, the pound strengthened against the dollar after the central bank announced a $2 billion financing deal with global banks. Bankers said dollar liquidity in the currency market was improving.
“Today foreign funds were aggressive buyers – the volumes are soaring. The markets will continue to be supported higher for the next week, although profit-taking cannot be ruled out,” said a Cairo-based equities trader told Reuters.
Non-Arab foreign and Arab investors were net buyers controlling 13.16 and 12.2 percent respectively of the total markets, with a net equity of 194.511 million pounds and 23.779 million pounds, respectively, excluding the deals.
On the contrary, local investors were net sellers capturing 74.64 percent of the total market, with a net equity of 218.291 million pounds, excluding the deals.
