OTE, Cosmote merger prospect bolsters bulls
Telecoms had a field day on the Greek bourse yesterday, with OTE and mobile phone subsidiary Cosmote advancing to new historic highs as the prospect of a merger drew closer after the resignation of Cosmote’s CEO. The buoyancy spread to the best part of the market. The benchmark Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed 1.42 percent higher at 5,103.47 points. The blue chip FTSE/ATHEX 20 index advanced 1.50 percent to 2,701.58 points, while the mid-cap and small-cap indices gained 0.53 percent and 1.69 percent respectively. The FTSE/ATHEX International was up 1.36 percent. Coca-Cola HBC seems to be making a habit of breaking one historic high after another. It continued its galloping pace, adding 3.42 percent to total more than 7 percent in two days, closing at -39.30. OTE climbed 3.35 percent, OPAP advanced 2.90 percent, Intralot added 2.59 percent, Bank of Cyprus ended 2.13 percent higher, Public Power Corporation gained 1.92 percent and Cosmote was up 1.91 percent on the day. Eurobank and Postal Savings Bank were the only blue chips to head south, less than 1 percent. Motor Oil ended unchanged. Turnover rose to -655.73 million, of which -253.99 million was in block trades.
