CAIRO: The Egyptian Exchange (EGX) widened its losing streak on Sunday, the first day of the long-awaited parliamentary election, as the Egypt’s pound weakened for a second time in less than a week amid speculations of further depreciation.
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) depreciated the pound to a new official low of 7.93 to a U.S. dollar at a regular foreign exchange (FX) auction on Sunday, from 7.83 in a Thursday sale.
This is the lowest level the local currency has been allowed to hit since the central bank began its auctions in December 2012, amid expectations of an extended slip in the coming days.
The benchmark index EGX30 dipped 0.74 percent to end at 7,538 points, compared to 7,594 points on Thursday.
Similarly, the small and mid-cap index EGX70 fell 0.11 percent to end at 394.5 points, compared to 395points in its last session.
The broader index EGX100 also declined 0.43 percent to close at 850.3 points, after 854 points on Thursday.
Market capitalization shed around 1.8 billion EGP ($226.86 million,) totaling 453 billion EGP, compared to 454.8 billion EGP in the previous session.