CAIRO, Egypt’s benchmark EGX30 fell 1.66% to 48,416.94 points on Monday, extending a three-session decline as the pound weakened beyond EGP56 per dollar for the first time and foreign and Arab investors sold a net $664mn of government securities. Although smaller stocks recovered modestly from Sunday’s market rout, improving breadth and higher turnover offered limited reassurance as persistent sovereign-debt selling and exceptional foreign-exchange activity exposed continuing pressure on Egypt’s financial markets.
Equity Selling Becomes More Selective
EGX30 lost 817.41 points, following declines of 3.56% on Sunday and 3.41% on Thursday, taking its cumulative fall since Wednesday to 8.4%.
The benchmark traded between 47,938.25 and 49,661.16 points before closing at 48,416.94, recovering nearly 479 points from its session low but remaining 1,244 points below its high. The wide trading range underscored continuing volatility rather than a sustained recovery.
EGX70 gained 0.23% to 15,317.12 points after Sunday’s 11.07% collapse, while EGX100 slipped 0.24% to 21,014.87 points.
Market breadth improved, with 84 advancing shares against 133 decliners and 10 unchanged. The proportion of gainers rose to approximately 37% from just 4.5% on Sunday, suggesting that indiscriminate selling was giving way to more selective trading.
Market capitalization fell EGP46.4bn to EGP 3.731 tn, bringing cumulative losses since Wednesday to approximately EGP334bn.
Equity turnover increased to EGP8.75bn from EGP 7.18bn on Sunday, with 254,300 transactions, according to Arab Finance.
The improvement in breadth and turnover indicates renewed buying interest in selected shares, although the continuing decline in EGX30 shows that heavyweight stocks remain under pressure.
Foreign Debt Sales Intensify Currency Pressure
Foreign investors sold EGP261.7mn net in Egyptian equities on Monday, while Arab investors sold EGP30.4mn. Egyptian investors bought EGP 292.1mn net, according to Arab Finance.
Institutions accounted for 35.93% of equity trading, compared with 64.06% for individuals. The participation figures do not independently establish net institutional accumulation.
Pressure was more pronounced in government securities.
Foreign and Arab investors recorded combined net sales of approximately $664.3mn in Egyptian Treasury bills and bonds, according to Egyptian Exchange data reported by Hapi as of 4 p.m.
Foreign investors sold $700.5mn net in Treasury bills, partially offset by Arab bill purchases of $16.9mn and foreign Treasury-bond purchases of $19.3mn.
These transactions represent secondary-market net sales, not necessarily equivalent immediate capital transfers abroad. Nevertheless, they indicate continuing reductions in foreign exposure to Egyptian sovereign debt.
The pound weakened to EGP 56.2126 buying and EGP 56.3511 selling against the dollar, according to the Central Bank of Egypt, compared with EGP55.7582 and EGP55.8964 on Sunday.
The dollar’s advance of approximately 45 piastres marked a further 0.8% depreciation in the pound.
Meanwhile, interbank dollar transactions exceeded $1.07bn over Sunday and Monday combined, according to banking sources cited by Economy Plus, against typical daily turnover of $150mn–250mn.
Interbank turnover measures currency trading activity rather than net capital outflows. Its exceptional scale nevertheless points to elevated foreign-exchange liquidity demand during the sell-off.
Banque du Caire Defies Wider Market Weakness
Despite the correction, Banque du Caire fixed its final offering price at EGP5.30 per share, the upper end of its indicative range.
The institutional placement attracted subscriptions equivalent to six times the shares offered, rising to 19.8 times when previously committed qualified-investor allocations were excluded.
The approved expansion of the offering from 30% to 45% of the bank’s issued capital raises its potential gross value to approximately EGP36.4bn.
The transaction involves existing shares sold by Banque Misr, meaning the proceeds will accrue to the selling shareholder rather than directly strengthening Banque du Caire’s capital.
Commitments by international development institutions, including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and International Finance Corporation, reinforce the offering’s significance for Egypt’s state-asset divestment programme.
However, strong primary-market subscriptions do not guarantee comparable secondary-market demand or protection against currency depreciation.
Monetary Policy Faces a Currency Test
The Central Bank’s October 29 monetary-policy meeting approaches amid currency volatility, sovereign-debt selling and heightened regional uncertainty.
Overnight deposit and lending rates remain at 19% and 20%, respectively, with the main-operation rate at 19.5%.
Depreciation increases imported-inflation risks and reduces dollar-denominated returns for unhedged foreign investors. Maintaining restrictive interest rates, meanwhile, supports the appeal of Egyptian assets but raises domestic financing costs.
The policy challenge is to preserve price stability without imposing unnecessary pressure on investment and economic activity.
Monday’s trading showed that Egypt’s equity correction is becoming more selective, but financial-market pressure has not subsided.
The contrast was particularly pronounced across the region: Saudi Arabia’s benchmark rose 3.4% and Qatar gained 2.8%, while Egypt’s blue-chip index continued to fall amid domestic currency and geopolitical concerns.
The decisive test is whether improving equity breadth can develop into sustained institutional demand while sovereign-debt selling moderates and the pound stabilizes. Until then, Egypt’s market correction has entered a more complex phase in which tentative equity stabilization coexists with persistent pressure on foreign-currency liquidity and investor confidence.
Related News:
Egypt’s EGX30 Rallies as Broader Stocks Fall, Debt Selling Persists
Egypt Halts Stock Trading as Market Loses EGP171bn
Read Also:
EGX Attracts 550,000 New Investors as Foreign Selling Deepens
