Reaction to Tuesday rise proved mild

The measured decline of the main index at Athinon Avenue yesterday will have hardly surprised any observers of the Greek bourse given the strong gains recorded a day earlier which traders would predictably be eager to cash in on. However, the fundamental trend of the last few days remained clear among banks stocks, whose index continued to grow.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index ended at 672.50 points, shedding 0.65% from Tuesday’s 676.91 points. The large-cap FTSE 25 index contracted 0.81% to 1,628.99 points, but the mid-cap index expanded 0.37%.

The banks index increased 1.37%, as Piraeus jumped 6.35%, National rose 1.12%, Eurobank added 0.45% and Alpha earned 0.32%.

Jumbo augmented 3.11%, but GEK Terna dropped 4.33%, OTE lost 3.86%, ADMIE Holdings declined 2.50%, Mytilineos gave up 2.23%, Ellaktor eased 2.16% and Coca-Cola HBC fell 2.11%.

In total 39 stocks enjoyed gains, 55 sustained losses and 20 remained unchanged. Turnover amounted to 74.4 million euros, up from Tuesday’s €59.6 million.

In Nicosia, the general index of the Cyprus Stock Exchange advanced 0.10% to close at 48.44 points.