Stocks up for third day; OTE slides
Greek shares rose for a third straight session yesterday but OTE telecom slumped more than 2 percent after Moody’s placed the company on review for a possible downgrade. The Athens bourse’s benchmark general index firmed 0.31 percent to 1,442.52 points after jumping more than 5 percent on Wednesday. The blue chip FTSE/ATHEX 20 index advanced 0.31 percent to 676.91 points. OTE gave up 2.10 percent to 7 euros after ratings agency Moody’s placed OTE’s Baa2 rating on review for a possible downgrade, citing concerns on how consumption will be affected by the economy’s downturn and the impact on OTE’s cash flow. Banks advanced 1.46 percent. National Bank jumped 2.22 percent to 6.44 euros and Alpha Bank ended at 3.70 euros, up 2.21 percent. Gambling company OPAP inched ahead 0.46 percent to 13.10 euros and Coca-Cola Hellenic climbed 0.15 percent to 20.18 euros. Turnover reached 101.1 million euros, versus 130 million in the previous session.
