ATHEX: Pressure on banks sends index lower
The Greek stock market lost almost all of its Wednesday gains on Thursday, heading south in line with most other European bourses, partly due to the reduced-growth and increased-inflation forecasts by the European Commission and partly because of worse-than-expected corporate results for banks and investment firms abroad.
The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 796.41 points, shedding 0.86% from Wednesday’s 803.28 points. The large-cap FTSE-25 index contracted 0.91%, ending at 1,905.21 points.
Banks suffered most of the pressure, with their index declining 3.09%. National nosedived 5.07%, Alpha dropped 2.84%, Piraeus shied 2.67% and Eurobank gave up 1.73%.
Among the other blue chips, Titan Cement parted with 3.85% and Lamda Development conceded 3.83%, while Piraeus Port Authority expanded 2.76% and OPAP improved 2.42%.
In total 37 stocks boasted gains, 56 registered losses and 13 remained unchanged.
Turnover amounted to 61.5 million euros, up from Wednesday’s €41.7 million.
In Nicosia, the general index of the Cyprus Stock Exchange rebounded 0.67% to 66.61 points.
