Egypt’s stocks tumbled to the lowest level in almost two months after the verdict in the trial of former President Hosni Mubarak sparked protests and on concern global economic growth is slowing.
Orascom Construction Industries (OCIC) declined to the lowest intraday level since April 22. Ezz Steel, the country’s biggest publicly traded manufacturer of the metal, lost 1.5 percent. The benchmark EGX30 Index (EGX30) dropped 1.9 percent to 4,599.13, the lowest intraday level since April 11, at 11:09 a.m. in Cairo.
A Cairo court handed life sentences to Mubarak and his interior minister Habib El-Adli for complicity in the deaths of demonstrators during last year’s apprising. It also acquitted six assistants of El-Adli of the charges related to the killings and Mubarak’s two sons of corruption charges. All decisions are subject to appeal. Thousands of demonstrators filled Cairo’s Tahrir Square within hours of the verdict to voice their discontent.
“Today’s market is definitely politically driven and the global scene is not helping make things better,” said Omar Darwish, equity sales trader at Cairo-based Commercial International Brokerage Co. “People are back in Tahrir demanding the fall of the regime as if nothing had happened over the past year and a half and this may result in the delay of the presidential election.”
EFG-Hermes Retreats
European stocks declined for the fourth week in five and U.S. shares tumbled, erasing the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU)’s 2012 gain. Oil dropped 3.8 percent in New York on June 1 after the Labor Department said American employers added the fewest workers in a year in May. The jobless rate in the euro region, which has been in the grips of a debt crisis for three years, reached a record high, of 11 percent in April and March.
Orascom Construction, the country’s biggest publicly traded builder, lost 1.3 percent to 254.5 pounds. Ezz Steel (ESRS) slipped to 6.55 Egyptian pounds, poised for the lowest close since April 11.
EFG-Hermes Holding SAE (HRHO) lost 0.6 percent after the biggest publicly traded Arab investment bank rejected a takeover bid from Planet IB Ltd. in favor of a joint-venture with Qatar’s QInvest LLC.
To contact the reporter on this story: Ahmed A Namatalla in Cairo at anamatalla@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Maedler at cmaedler@bloomberg.net
Bank reforms must press ahead, says Which? - BBC News
Chancellor George Osborne should resist pressure from banks to reverse planned reforms of the financial sector, consumer group Which? has said.
Mr Osborne is creating a new watchdog that Which? says should protect consumers from "rip-off" charges.
The Financial Services Bill will mean the replacement of the Financial Services Authority by two new bodies.
The British Bankers' Association denied lobbying Mr Osborne and said banks appreciated the need for the bill.
The Financial Services Bill is due before the House of Lords and a banking reform White Paper is due out.
Banks have claimed that the reforms may prompt big financial institutions to leave the UK.
Which? says the government must ensure consumers are sufficiently protected from a recurrence of the banking collapse that led to a costly public bailout.
Executive director Richard Lloyd said: "We have seen intense lobbying from the banks... including a crescendo of scaremongering over recent weeks on the risk of the end of 'free banking' and of big financial institutions leaving the country.
"The chancellor must resist buckling under this pressure."
'Ordinary people'He said without "strong action" to shake up the banking culture, consumers would continue to pay the price.
The group urged the government to keep "ordinary people" in mind when pushing through its reforms.
The Financial Services Bill will replace the structure - introduced by the previous Labour government - under which oversight is shared between the Bank of England, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Treasury.
Instead, a new Financial Conduct Authority will be established to enforce the effective and fair functioning of markets.
The Financial Policy Committee will be established to look after the general well-being of the UK financial system.
And a new Prudential Regulation Authority will monitor the performance of banks and other companies that manage significant risks on their balance sheets.
The bill will also give the chancellor powers to veto decisions made by the Bank of England when dealing with bank bailouts.
Financial institutions have campaigned against plans to put savers first if a bank becomes insolvent.
'Absolutely right'
The government is also due to publish a White Paper on banking reform, introducing measures to prevent another banking collapse.
Angela Knight, the British Bankers' Association's chief, told the BBC that the banking sector was working with the government to make reforms, not block them.
"We entirely agree that there needs to be changes and we're working very strongly with government on these changes.
"Do customers need protection? Do they need to be put first? That is absolutely right as well.
"There are debates that need to be taken but actually they've got to be taken properly."
Mr Osborne is due to deliver his Mansion House speech on the economy on 14 June.
Money, Dedication Likely Why Bucs Went With Clark Over Winslow - The Ledger
But the move was more than just numbers. Clark's professionalism will go a long way in the locker room of the young Bucs.
Clark was signed as a free agent after being released by the Indianapolis Colts, who purged most of their team. Winslow was traded to the Seattle Seahawks for a conditional seventh-round pick.
If the team goes strictly by the numbers, the deal would never have been made. The two have basically the same numbers over their careers. Winslow is 28, 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, while Clark is 32, 6-foot-3 and 252 pounds.
Winslow has 10 more catches, while Clark has 51 more receiving yards. Their average per catch is nearly identical (Clark 11.4 to Winslow's 11.1).
The major difference, strictly by the numbers, is in touchdown receptions, where Clark has a 2-to-1 edge over Winslow (46 to 23).
That alone could have made a difference although Winslow's fans could counter with the past three years.
During that span, Winslow did not miss a game and averaged 72 catches during that time.
Clark, who battled injuries, has averaged 11 games and 57 catches over the same time period.
While critics will likely point out Bucs special assistant Butch Davis had something to do with Winslow being traded (the duo were together in Cleveland), that likely did not play much of a role.
What likely played a role was Winslow's salary.
Winslow was scheduled to make $3.3 million, not including a little over $1 million in workout and roster bonuses.
Clark signed a one-year deal worth up to $2.7 million with just $1 million guaranteed.
"Certainly there's a business side of this game at this level," said Tampa Bay coach Greg Schiano, who wouldn't say much else about trading Winslow.
Although Clark has played a full season just once entering his 10th season, he has played 15 games four times.
"He's a proven player," Schiano said of Clark. "I know he's had some health issues of late, some issues that have kept him from playing at the level of football he played earlier in his career. I believe whole-heartedly he's going to return to form and play the way he's capable."
Clark is going to do everything he can to get back to his high standards.
"Once you stop proving yourself, you're out the door," he said. "You have to bring your A game every day. That's what makes guys special who stay in the league a long time. To do it day in and day out (and for years), finding those pros is special.
"I'm just trying to be consistent and just be a player that (Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman) and the offense can depend on," he said. "That's all I tried to be. You are never guaranteed 100 catches. You are never guaranteed 20 catches. You have to earn every one of them."
That determination and dedication is why Clark is now a Buc.
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