Index drops slightly after a quiet session
Stocks dropped for a fourth day in a row yesterday on the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE) in a rather quiet session marked by investor interest in medium- and small-capitalization firms and lower turnover. Analysts said that the market is still trying to digest the big gains it made in previous weeks. The ASE composite share price index closed at 3,954.18 points, a slight fall of 4.52 points or 0.11 percent. The FTSE/Athex 20 index of blue chips declined 0.06 percent to close at 2,165.26 points, although mid- and small-caps gained 0.59 percent and 1.77 percent respectively. The FTSE/Athex International index gained 0.21 percent to close at 5,452.24 points. Among blue chips, significant gains were recorded by cement producer Titan (up 2.72 percent to 35.44 euros), metals group Viohalco (2.45 percent to 9.20 euros) and National Bank (1.61 percent to 37.76 euros). By contrast, losses were registered by electricity company PPC (down 2.11 percent to 17.64 euros), refiner Hellenic Petroleum (2.02 percent to 12.62 euros), betting company OPAP (1.35 percent to 29 euros) and technology holding company Intracom (1.15 percent to 6.90 euros). Out of 324 traded shares, 159 gained, 112 declined and 53 ended unchanged. Turnover reached 276.97 million euros, including 14 million in prearranged trades.
