Egypt's stocks dipped on Monday amid low turnover levels with the main index falling 1.43 percent to 5,906 points.

 

Daily stock turnover registered at LE316.8 million.

 

Market bellwether, Commercial International Bank (CIB), plunged 1.01 percent to LE31.13 per share.

 

Leading real estate developers Talaat Moustafa Group (TMG) and Palm Hills for Development (PHD) tumbled 2.92 percent to LE5.08 per share and 2.78 percent to LE2.13 per share respectively.

 

Bank of America Merrill Lynch said in a report that if bilateral and multilateral aid pledges materialised on time, Egypt could avoid a sharp currency devaluation this year.

 

But it added: "We think the authorities' plan remains the same: muddle through due to import restrictions and external aid, hoping that foreign direct investment can pick up self-sustainably.

 

"However, the pledges obtained are not sufficient to boost FX reserves into a safer zone, and thus we continue to see pressure on the Egyptian pound playing out."