CAIRO (AP) — State TV says Egypt's benchmark stock index has closed with record gain of 7.5 percent, following the declaration of an Islamist as victor in presidential elections.
Authorities halted trading on the Egyptian exchange for half an hour Monday after the EGX100 index rose more than 5 percent, triggering a "circuit breaker" to prevent drastic market fluctuation.
State TV said the market closed with a record increase. The benchmark index, EGX30, jumped by 7.5 percent.
Analysts say investor optimism has been fuelled by declaration of a victor following a tight race between Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood and the last prime minister of deposed leader Hosni Mubarak.
Many feared the announcement would trigger violence, but so far most of the public expressions have been celebrations by Morsi backers.

