The Egyptian Exchange (EGX) closed on Thursday up for the third running session backed by share purchases by local institutions and mutual funds.

The market capital achieved gains worth EGP 4.4 billion to reach EGP 428.5 billion, after transactions hit EGP 825 million. The gains achieved over the week recorded EGP 13 billion.

The EGX 30 benchmark index soared 1.95 percent to close at 6,779.28 points.

The broader EGX 70 index of the leading smaller and mid cap enterprises (SME) rose by 0.7 percent to 362.91 points.

The all-embracing EGX 100 index also increased by 1.84 percent to close at 770.79 points.