Egyptian shares fight back

Egypt's shares rebounded yesterday as investor confidence improved after the trial appearance of the former president Hosni Mubarak.

Mr Mubarak is the first Arab ruler to appear in court since uprisings swept parts of the region, and analysts said it had caused concern among investors who feared clashes between his supporters and foes.

Orascom Telecom, North Africa's biggest mobile phone company by subscribers, rose 1.9 per cent to 3.70 Egyptian pounds a share.

Talaat Moustafa Group, Egypt's biggest publicly traded property developer, gained 3.8 per cent to 4.35 pounds. EFG-Hermes, the country's biggest publicly traded investment bank, added 3.2 per cent to 19.33 pounds a share.

The benchmark EGX 30 Index added 1.7 per cent to 5,008 points.

"There's a slight rebound. Retail investors who feared the worst, were relieved that clashes, or rock-throwing, during the trial did not happen," said Marwan Shurrab, the chief trader at Gulfmena Investments in Dubai.

Egyptian shares dropped to a near 13-week low on Wednesday, down 0.9 per cent to 4,923.29 points.

In the UAE, the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index added 0.7 per cent to 2,670.79 points, while the Dubai Financial Market General Index rose 0.8 per cent to 1,540.58 points.

Elsewhere in the region: Kuwait's measure was little changed at 6,066.20; Bahrain's measure lost 0.2 per cent to 1,281.04; Oman's index was little changed at 5,758.92; and Qatar's benchmark gained 1.2 per cent to 8,498.62. The Saudi Tadawul was closed for the day.

halsayegh@thenational.ae