Investors uneasy ahead of Q2 earnings
Greek stocks fell for a fourth straight session yesterday, in line with sliding European peers, with sellers focusing on banks ahead of second-quarter earnings in the sector. The Athens bourse’s benchmark general index dropped 2.30 percent to 1,666.01 points. The blue chip FTSE/ATHEX 20 index gave up 2.76 percent to 810.35 points. Banks shed 3.69 percent. Brokers said investors were cautious on banks, weighing the impact that Greece’s deepening recession will have on second-quarter earnings. Lenders, including National Bank of Greece (NBG) and EFG Eurobank, are scheduled to unveil first-half figures in the last few days of August. NBG dropped 3.59 percent to 10.75 euros, while EFG Eurobank fell 3.55 percent to 5.70 euros. Alpha Bank dipped 4.96 percent to 5.56 euros and Marfin Investment Group shed 5.22 percent to 1.09 euros. Turnover rose to 84.5 million euros from 54.7 million euros.
