Egyptian stocks fell the most since November after a popular uprising in Tunisia forced the ouster of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, raising concern Egypt’s regime may face similar pressure.
Commercial International Bank Egypt SAE, the country’s biggest publicly traded lender, headed for its lowest close in more than a month. EFG-Hermes Holding SAE, Egypt’s biggest publicly traded investment bank, declined 3.3 percent. The EGX30 Index lost 1.2 percent, the largest intraday decline since Nov. 30, to 7,073.86 at 12:59 p.m. in Cairo. Tunisia’s benchmark Tunindex tumbled 13 percent last week as increasing violence lead to the toppling of the country’s leader on Jan. 14.
The Tunisian protests may embolden demonstrators who have recently taken to the streets in other North African and Middle Eastern countries, including Egypt, Morocco and Jordan, all of which have experienced demonstrations about economic conditions, said Marina Ottaway, director of the Middle East program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington.
No comments:
Post a Comment