ASE on correction path as small-caps resist
Stocks declined yesterday on the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE) for the fourth session in a row. Market analysts said the bourse is going through a normal correction phase. Small-capitalization stocks resisted the trend, however, resulting in gainers outnumbering decliners. The ASE general index closed at 3,247.60 points, a drop of 11.80 points or 0.36 percent. The FTSE/ASE-20 index of blue chips declined 0.73 percent to close at 1,803.98 points. Mid-caps declined 0.43 percent and small-caps gained 0.81 percent. Some blue chips resisted the trend: They included telecommunications equipment manufacturer Intracom (up 4.78 percent to 6.14 euros), Duty Free Shops (1.92 percent to 15.96 euros), refiner Hellenic Petroleum (1.20 percent to 10.12 euros) and mobile telecommunications firm CosmOTE (0.38 percent to 15.94 euros). By contrast, significant losses were posted by construction group Hellenic Technodomiki (down 3.20 percent to 4.24 euros), Emporiki Bank (2.68 percent to 23.22 euros), National Bank (1.78 percent to 29.78 euros) and betting company OPAP (1.09 percent to 25.32 euros). Of 335 traded stocks, 162 gained, 94 declined and 79 ended unchanged. Turnover reached 182.05 million euros, including 20 million in prearranged trades.
