ATHEX: Banks stocks lose steam

Wednesday’s enthusiasm over Greek bank stocks evaporated on Thursday, while trading volume almost halved, taking the wind out of the benchmark’s sails.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 578.87 points, adding 0.26 percent to Wednesday’s 577.39 points. The large-cap FTSE 25 index grew 0.60 percent to end at 1,559.36 points.

Eurobank advanced 5.79 percent, but National Bank fell 2.37 percent.

In total 42 stocks rose, 47 dropped and 17 stayed put.

Turnover reached 44.3 million euros, down from Wednesday’s 86 million.

The general index of the Cyprus Stock Exchange in Nicosia declined 0.54 percent to close at 68.09 points.