Stocks rebound as PPC hits an all-time record
Stock prices posted a strong rebound yesterday to take the main index of the Athens bourse above the 4,900-point level, boosted once again by Public Power Corporation’s record high price. The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index was up 2.09 percent, closing at 4,925.78 points from 4,824.93 points on Thursday. The blue chip FTSE/ATHEX 20 index ascended by 2.34 percent, reaching 2,602.11 points. The mid-cap FTSE/ATHEX 40 index rose by 2.18 percent, while the small-cap FTSE/ATHEX 80 index gained a considerable 3.88 percent. The FTSE/ATHEX International was up 2.31 percent to 6,929.18 points. Among blue chips Postal Savings Bank enjoyed the biggest gains (up 8.36 percent), followed by PPC (7.93 percent), Viohalco (5.63 percent), Piraeus Bank (4.88 percent) and Marfin Popular Bank (3.25 percent). By contrast, Intralot ended with losses of 1.70 percent. Two packages of OTE shares, totaling 30,000 shares, were sold at -25.02. OTE, for whom Morgan Stanley has raised its target price from -27 to -28, also upped its stake further in subsidiary Cosmote to 86.78 percent, buying 1,059,898 shares at -26.2483 each. Turnover came to -1,376.5 million, of which -898.8 million concerned block trades. The Cypriot General Index rose 2.77 percent to 4,758.33 points.
