ATHEX: Benchmark contains its losses
The Bank of England’s decision in favor of bond buying contained the significant losses of most stock markets in Europe, including that of Athens, which had risen from earlier lows by the closing. The local market is also concerned about the continuous increase in sovereign bond yields, with the benchmark 10-year paper climbing above 5%.
The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 791.42 points, shedding 0.88% from Tuesday’s 798.41 points. The large-cap FTSE-25 index contracted 0.97% to end at 1,899.57 points.
The banks index dropped 2.11%, as Piraeus conceded 3.39%, National parted with 2.65%, Eurobank shrank 2.29% and Alpha gave up 0.83%.
Coca-Cola HBC underperformed as it fell 4.08%, followed by Aegean Airlines (down 2.50%), Viohalco (2.02%) and GEK Terna (1.73%). Motor Oil advanced 2.50%, Jumbo earned 2.09% and Quest Holdings improved 1.23%.
In total 34 stocks recorded gains, 66 took losses and 18 remained unchanged.
Turnover amounted to 67.1 million euros, up from Tuesday’s €61.6 million.
In Nicosia, the general index of the Cyprus Stock Exchange decreased 0.74% to 73.39 points.
