The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) benchmark index advanced 29.86 points, or 0.7 percent, to 4,055.59, recovering some of yesterday’s 1.4 percent decline.

The FTSE/ATHEX 20 index of the country’s biggest companies added 0.7 percent to 2,113.19 points.

Alpha Bank and OTE led blue chips, climbing 3.5 percent and 3.1 percent respectively.

Forthnet jumped 8 percent to 6.24 euros, gaining for a third day. Greece’s second-biggest Internet services provider is a “fantastic buying opportunity” after the company agreed to acquire a pay-TV operator, analysts at Merrill Lynch & Co wrote in a report.

Public Power Corporation gained 1.5 percent to 27.40 euros, reversing some of Monday’s 2.2 percent retreat. Greece’s biggest electricity producer approved an agreement to work on projects with German utility RWE in the Greek and Albanian energy markets.

Titan Cement and gaming software firm Intralot lost 2.8 percent and 1.9 percent respectively.

National Bank declined for a second day, falling 1.2 percent to 32.70 euros. The country’s biggest bank confirmed a report that it had acquired 7.34 million shares in Hellenic Postbank on the market.

Turnover topped 306.9 million euros. (Bloomberg, Kathimerini)