Late blue chip surge propels index higher
The top-heavy local market was again swayed by a handful of blue chips that enjoyed late gains on Wednesday, helping the benchmark index register its first rise this month despite the fact that the majority of stocks headed south.
The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 985.36 points, growing 0.39 percent from Tuesday’s 981.50 points.
The large-cap FTSE/ATHEX-25 index expanded by 0.76 percent to end at 334.86 points, but the mid-cap index contracted by 0.85 percent.
The mood on Athinon Avenue was rather subdued yesterday until the last few minutes of trade, when turnover grew somewhat as buyers emerged for the large-caps of National (up 3.32 percent), Coca-Cola HBC (2.59 percent), OPAP (2.08 percent) and Marfin Investment Group (5.30 percent). On the day that the 2nd Greek Investment Forum opened in New York, its organizer, Hellenic Exchanges, added 2.14 percent. Alpha Bank led the losers, giving up 5.93 percent, followed by Corinth Pipeworks (down 2.36 percent).
In total 61 stocks registered gains, 88 reported losses and 19 remained unchanged.
Turnover amounted to just 53.1 million euros, down from Tuesday’s 72 million.
