Market cools off after Alogoskoufis’s warning
Stocks gained for the fourth session running on the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE) yesterday, edging close to 3,800 points in a volatile session marked by heavy turnover. The ASE composite share price index closed at 3,799.02 points, a gain of 31.11 points or 0.83 percent. During the session it reached a high of 3,842.17 points but then dropped, market watchers said, partly because of comments by Economy and Finance Minister Giorgos Alogoskoufis reminding investors of the 1999 bubble market and its negative effects over the following years. The FTSE/Athex-20 index of blue chips gained 1.08 percent to close at 2,094.76 points, while mid- and small-caps declined 1.03 percent and 1.19 percent respectively. The new FTSE/Athex International index gained 0.74 percent to close at 5,192.51 points. Betting company OPAP outshone the other blue chips yesterday, thanks to two favorable reports: UBS raised the target price to 35 euros per share from 28.70 previously, while Morgan Stanley set the target price at 32 euros. OPAP gained 4.54 percent to close at 30.38 euros. Of the 331 traded shares, 124 gained, 160 declined and 47 ended unchanged. Turnover reached 453.66 million euros, including 48.60 million in prearranged trades.
