Telecoms help bourse inch slightly higher

CAIRO: Egyptian stocks edged a sliver higher on Sunday driven by the telecom sector, which has gained momentum since Telecom Egypt said it would seek a larger share in Vodafone Egypt. The momentum in the market has been up since the Telecom Egypt offer for Vodafone and the healthy momentum was extended today, Mohammed Radwan of Delta Securities said. The benchmark Hermes Index inched up 0.1 percent at 57,125.06 points, and the well-watched Case 30 index was 0.2 percent higher at 6,459.73 points. The broader CIBC-100 index rose 0.4 percent to 261.69 points. Telecom Egypt s shares rose 4 percent to LE 15.65 a share ($2.73). The state-owned, fixed-line operator is seeking 24.4 percent of Vodafone Egypt, which would increase its stake to 49.9 percent. The remaining 50.1 percent belongs to Vodafone Group, which has said it would keep its stake. Shares in MobiNil, Egypt s other mobile operator, rose 4.2 percent to LE 167. Raya Holdings telecom subsidiary also rose 5.3 percent to LE 15.35 a share. Anyone who wants to have telecoms allocations in Egypt would not have the option to buy in Vodafone … so will have to reallocate to MobiNil, said Bassim Arida of CIBC brokerage. Sixth of October Development and Investment (SODIC) extended its gains for the third trading session in a row, rising 3.7 percent to LE 124.85 a share. Radwan said investors were reacting to the company s general assembly announcement of a private placement of 9 million shares. The offer was fully subscribed at LE 100 a share. But Alexandria Mineral Oils (AMOC) fell 2.6 percent to LE 84.55 after a newspaper report that a Saudi-Egyptian mining firm abandoned plans to buy a 50 percent stake which the government offered two weeks ago, Radwan said.