Egypt's stock exchange slumped on Tuesday as violence and political uncertainty impelled non-Arab foreign investors to sell their holdings in the troubled market.
The main EGX30 index fell 2.01 per cent to sit at 5,495 points. Its gains since the beginning of the year dropped to just 0.6 per cent.
"The political scene in Egypt is very bad for investment, and foreign investors are exiting the market," Mostafa Badra, capital markets expert told Ahram Online.
Non-Arab foreign investors made up 28 per cent of the day's LE488 million turnover, and net-sold at a sizeable LE102 million. Arab and Egyptian investors were net buyers at LE46 million and LE57 million respectively.
The Commercial International Bank (CIB) saw a whopping 5.3 per cent drop on a LE93 million turnover. It closed the day's trade at LE35.01 per share.
"CIB is a share that is heavily held by foreigners; it is normal that it would lose value as they exit the market," Badra said.
Many governorates across Egypt, including Cairo, are still experiencing violent clashes in the aftermath of the Port Said massacre verdict.
The real estate sector was also hit hard, losing 2.14 per cent. The two largest developers, Talaat Mostafa Group and Palm Hills Development, saw their share prices fall 2.19 per cent and 2.93 per cent respectively.
The broader EGX70 dropped 1.26 per cent to record a 5.5 per cent decline since the beginning of the year. Out of 168 shares traded today, 119 finished in the red while 18 closed in the green.
Orascom Construction Industries (OCI), the share which carried the market over the past two days, fell 0.96 per cent to close at LE255.98 per share.
The telecommunication sector dropped 1.17 per cent, mainly due to declines in Telecom Egypt and Orascom Telecom and Media Technology.
