Egypt Indexes Up Over 1 Pct, Talaat Moustafa Gains

The benchmark index EGX 30, formerly known as the CASE 30, ended 1.37 percent higher at 3,647.02 points.

Egypt's two main indexes gained more than 1 percent on Sunday in low volumes as real estate developer Talaat Moustafa rose strongly for a second day and big caps shrugged off regional declines, traders said.

The benchmark index EGX 30, formerly known as the CASE 30, ended 1.37 percent higher at 3,647.02 points. The rival Hermes index added 1.80 percent to 347.22 points. The broader CIBC index ticked 0.63 percent higher to 238.2 points.

"In general, the market volumes were very low," Mohamed Ebeid from EFG-Hermes said.

Talaat Moustafa gained 3.07 percent to 2.69 Egyptian pounds ($0.48), after a 9 percent jump on Thursday. Its shares have plunged more than 77 percent since the start of 2008.

"It is extremely undervalued. It has probably biggest land bank in Egypt. It's extremely cheap," said Hashem Ghoneim from Pyramids Capital.

Traders said investors were speculating about the size of the developer's expected dividend.

Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) gained 1.04 percent to 116.41 pounds, in what traders saw as a positive decoupling from international markets.

Maridive & Oil Services rose 2.77 percent to $2.60 a share after the company said its 2008 net profit rose 9.4 percent to $87.6 million.