Stocks rebound in thin trade
Greek stocks rebounded yesterday on selective blue-chip buying as turnover thinned in holiday-hit trade. The Athens bourse’s benchmark general index firmed 0.38 percent to 1,632.16 points, after dipping just over 5 percent last week. The blue chip FTSE/ATHEX 20 index added 0.60 percent to 794.38 points. OTE telecom dipped 1.69 percent to 5.80 euros, while betting company OPAP rose 0.69 percent to 11.63 euros. Power company PPC slipped 0.38 percent to 13.25 euros. Banks moved ahead 0.91 percent. National Bank rose 0.29 percent to 10.34 euros and Alpha Bank gained 1.46 percent to 5.55 euros. Bank of Cyprus outperformed, jumping 3.01 percent to 4.11 euros. Shares in cosmetics and household goods wholesaler Sarantis added 2.20 percent to 4.19 euros. Piraeus Securities cut its target price on Sarantis to 5 euros from 6 euros previously, citing the «challenging conditions» in Greece. The brokerage reiterated its «outperform» rating on Sarantis, which is scheduled to unveil second-quarter figures on August 30. Turnover reached 49 million euros.
