Egyptian shares dip on profit taking, housing up

CAIRO: Egyptian shares fell on Thursday from profit taking on EFG-Hermes and Mobinil , dealers said, one day after the benchmark Hermes index reached an all-time closing high. The whole market fell on profit taking today. A lot of retail investors cashed out before the weekend, said Mohamed Radwan of Delta Securities. Institutional investors were absent today to create the kind of demand that was created throughout the whole week. EFG-Hermes, the most heavily traded stock by turnover, closed 1.8 percent down at 46 Egyptian pounds ($8.07) and mobile operator Mobinil closed 2.3 percent down at 184.95 Egyptian pounds. EFG-Hermes fell because of profit taking as it has been rising for a while, said Osama Gamal of Al Shorouk Brokerage. Mobinil, however, fell with negative market sentiment , Radwan of Delta Securities said. The shares had risen earlier in the week after the company said it was likely to buy a 3G license in 2007. The housing sector defied the market sentiment, with almost all main shares rising at least around 2 percent. Sixth of October Development and Investment, the second most heavily traded stock by turnover, closed 1.8 percent up at LE 149.63, while Heliopolis Housing closed 2.4 percent up at LE 553. People have been quite keen on owning positions in the real estate and housing sector since the auctions took place based on projections that the real estate boom is going to continue, Radwan of Delta Securities said. Shares in the real estate and housing sector has been mainly on the upside after the government sold pieces of land near Cairo in auctions for some $3 billion in May. Real estate valuations increased, prompting brokerage houses to readjust their estimates for real estate companies. Overall, the Case 30 Index dropped 0.8 percent to end at 7,913.94, while the benchmark Hermes Index closed 0.7 percent down at 70,434.24.