Egyptian stocks show differing trends ahead of central bank's interest rates verdict

Muhammed Khalid , Thursday 3 Aug 2023

The Egyptian Exchange (EGX) saw varied performance over the week that ended on Thursday, 3 August, as traders anticipate the interest rate decision by the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE), Mahmoud Atta, financial market analyst, told Ahram Online.

EGX trading hall. Ahram Gate.

The main index EGX30 rose by 0.65 percent to close at 17,451.44 points. The EGX70 index grew by 0.26 percent in a week to end at 3,525.56 points, while the EGX100 increased by 0.5 percent to stand at 5,196.85 points.

Atta expected the CBE to keep the interest rates unchanged, predicting that unchanged interest rates will support the EGX indices next week and may even push the EGX30 up to 17,800 points.

"One of the positive indicators that will boost the performance of the market is the release of financial statements by companies in various sectors, including petrochemicals, fertilizers, food, and banking," the analyst said.

Over the week, the total trading value reached EGP 13 billion, a 51.1 percent increase from EGP 8.6 billion in the previous week.

Market capitalization rose by 0.45 percent to a total of EGP 1.185 billion.

Egyptians accounted for 87.5 percent of total transactions, while non-Arab foreigners and Arab traders accounted for 6.1 and 6.4 percent, respectively.