Frigoglass rallies; banks remain under pressure
The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) benchmark index fell for a second day yesterday, decreasing 14.26 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,151.36, in line with markets abroad. The FTSE/ATHEX 20 index of the country’s biggest companies dropped 0.8 percent to 2,185.62 points, with banks again bearing the brunt of pressures. The following were among the most active stocks in Athens trading yesterday: Frigoglass rallied the most in more than a month, adding 3.4 percent to 21.88 euros. The supplier of custom-made beverage coolers said first-quarter profit increased 11 percent to 20.8 million euros ($32.6 million) on higher sales and after acquiring a Turkish manufacturer. National Bank of Greece fell 1.5 percent to 33.30 euros, the lowest since April 29. Greece’s biggest lender on Tuesday unilaterally decided to give workers annual pay increases of up to 8.5 percent this year, double the Greek inflation rate, but employees’ unions rejected the move, calling for negotiations. Motor Oil led blue chip gains, advancing 3.5 percent, Mytilineos rebounded, adding 1.9 percent, and Hellenic Technodomiki was 1.2 percent higher. By contrast, Bank of Cyprus slumped 3.2 percent, Piraeus Bank dropped 2.7 percent and Eurobank slid 1.8 percent. Turnover dropped to 226.6 million euros. (Kathimerini, Bloomberg)
