Egyptian stocks listed overseas are trading at the lowest levels since before the protests that toppled Hosni Mubarak as the Cairo exchange’s continued closure threatens to deepen losses for investors the bourse is under pressure to protect.
Global depositary receipts of Commercial International Bank Egypt SAE (CBKD) sank 15 percent in London last week to the lowest level since July, while Orascom Telecom Holding SAE (OTLD) traded 5.2 percent below its close on Jan. 27, when the Egyptian Exchange shut down. The U.S.-traded Market Vectors Egypt Index ETF has lost 6.2 percent in two weeks even as the MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 1.5 percent.
Egypt’s bourse on March 3 postponed plans to resume trading today, citing the resignation of Prime Minister Ahmed Shafik, and didn’t give a new opening date. Regulators said on March 2 they may require investment funds to disclose their shareholders as part of a probe of officials linked to Mubarak. The new rules and the exchange’s 24-day shutdown are deterring foreign investors and may spur a selloff when trading resumes, according to F&C Asset Management Plc and ING Investment Management.
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