Index rises over 5,300 points on blue chips
The 5,300-point barrier is now history for the general index of the Greek bourse, as stocks registered a new record for the year, reaching levels unseen since February 2000. The index was particularly bolstered by a new record for the stock of National Bank. The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index was up 0.41 percent, closing at 5,310.88 points yesterday from 5,289.22 points on Monday. The blue chip FTSE/ATHEX 20 index rose by 0.60 percent, reaching 2,813.95 points. The mid-cap FTSE/ATHEX 40 index again declined, by 0.51 percent, while the small-cap FTSE/ATHEX 80 index grew by 0.18 percent. The FTSE/ATHEX International was up 0.43 percent to 7,560.58 points. Marfin Popular Bank stood out among blue chips with a 3.05 percent increase, also registering a record high, ahead of Intralot (up 2.35 percent), National Bank (1.49 percent) and EFG Eurobank (1.29 percent). Moving southward were Postal Savings Bank (less 1.97 percent), Motor Oil (1.73 percent) and Titan (1.37 percent). Most sectoral indices posted losses, headed by insurance (down 1.87 percent), while the greatest gains were for banks (up 0.87 percent). Turnover rose to -515.37 million, of which -92.33 million concerned block trades.
