The EGX30, the Egyptian Stock Exchange’s main index, recovered slightly Wednesday and gained 0.42 percent following two consecutive days of heavy losses.
Stocks had been hit hard Monday and Tuesday, with the EGX30 losing a combined 4.79 percent, after the government banned Orascom Construction Industry founders from travel and accused the company of evading LE14 billion in taxes.
Late Monday, financial supervisory authorities also issued new regulations that make it more difficult for companies to delist from the exchange by limiting the amount of shares domestic companies can transfer into internationally-traded global depository receipts.
OCI announced mid-February that a majority of its shareholders had agreed to transfer their shares to a Dutch-based company to be known as OCI NV, a move experts say means the company will eventually delist to avoid future tax disputes with the Egyptian government.
Many of the market's blue chip stocks responded negatively to these new measures, which they predict will make it more difficult to do business at home and aboard.
