Banks drag shares lower, Hyatt climbs
Casino operator Hyatt Regency outperformed on the Athens bourse yesterday after it won the race to buy a stake in Athens’s only casino, with the broader market slipping 0.79 percent on weak bank shares. Hyatt gained 4.71 percent to end at 5.78 euros. Brokers said that a correction in bank stocks, which lost 1.92 percent, turned investors cautious. The Athens bourse’s benchmark general index shed 0.79 percent to settle at 2,279.50 points. A recent revision of Morgan Stanley’s Greece index came into effect yesterday, dropping two stocks and adding the Public Power Corporation (PPC). Also kicking into effect yesterday was the bourse’s revised FTSE/ASE indices. The bourse’s FTSE/ASE-20 blue chip index dropped 1.31 percent to 1,202.19 points, with mid-caps down 0.09 percent and small-caps ending flat. Turnover eased to 99.80 million euros on volume of 16.5 million shares. Losers beat winners 203 to 105 while 47 shares were unchanged on 355 traded. (Reuters) Creta Farm
