ATHEX: Index rises for a sixth day in a row

The strong start to Monday’s session at the Greek bourse gave way to some profit-taking initiatives in the afternoon that erased almost all of the benchmark’s gains. The main index closed on the day’s low, but that humble growth sufficed for yet another nine-year high. This was the sixth consecutive session of gains for the benchmark.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 1,263.38 points, adding 0.14% to Friday’s 1,261.67 points. The large-cap FTSE-25 index expanded 0.29% to end at 3,071.56 points, though mid-caps declined 0.18%.

Banks showed a mixed picture, with their index improving 0.50%. Eurobank earned 1.86% and Piraeus fetched 1.01%, as Alpha slipped 0.19% and National eased 0.67%. Lamda Development grew 2.44% and OTE telecom collected 1.71%, while Ellaktor gave up 2.15% and GEK Terna dropped 1.70%.

In total 68 stocks reported gains, 45 took losses and 18 remained unchanged.

Turnover amounted to 130.8 million euros, up from last Friday’s €127.4 million.

In Nicosia, the general index of the Cyprus Stock Exchange increased 1.49% to close at 116.36 points.