CAIRO: Egypt s benchmark index dipped 1.9 percent, with Orascom Telecom dropping on uncertainty over the outcome of an offer by France Telecom for outstanding shares in Mobinil, traders said.
There is a lot of uncertainty … there are a lot of questions around OT because we don t know what s going to happen with the Mobinil-France Telecom deal, Hashem Ghoneim, vice chairman of Pyramids Capital, said.
The Egyptian regulator approved an offer by France Telecom to buy all outstanding Mobinil shares at LE 245 each. Orascom and France Telecom are both major shareholders in Mobinil.
Executives of Orascom Telecom will meet this week with counterparts from France Telecom to discuss the Mobinil ownership row, Orascom said on Tuesday.
Orascom shares dropped 7.9 percent, extending Monday s declines, while Mobinil shed 0.7 percent. Pioneers Holdings, which said last month it would buy investment bank Beltone Financial, fell 4.4 percent.
The EGX30 closed at 6,483 points. -Reuters
