ATHEX: Stock advance continues at Athinon Avenue

Buyers pushed stocks higher again on Tuesday in Athens, with the climate of corporate action in mergers and acquisitions boosting optimism about market consolidation and opportunities for investments from abroad that will turn solid ideas into healthy profits. This got the month of February off to a strong start, following in January’s footsteps.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 947.88 points, adding 1.19% to Monday’s 936.77 points. The large-cap FTSE-25 index expanded 1.35%, ending at 2,304.81 points.

The banks index improved 1.60%, as Alpha advanced 2.14%, National grew 1.72%, Piraeus collected 1.28% and Eurobank climbed 1.05%.

Among the other blue chips, Viohalco jumped 4.60%, Aegean Airlines rose 4.55%, GEK Terna augmented 3.25%, Mytilineos grabbed 3.43%, OPAP earned 2.58% and Motor Oil climbed 2.25%, while Quest Holdings parted with 3.30%.

In total 64 stocks enjoyed gains, 47 counted losses and 20 remained unchanged. Turnover amounted to €89.1 million, up from Monday’s €83 million.

In Nicosia, the general index of the Cyprus Stock Exchange increased 0.64% to 69.66 points.