ASE follows Euro bourses, rises 0.14 pct
Upbeat European stock markets gave a late boost to a flagging Athens bourse yesterday, with EFG Eurobank leading the bank sector higher after ratings agency Moody’s upgraded its outlook from stable to positive. EFG Eurobank outperformed the broader market, advancing 2.17 percent to 13.18 euros after the Moody’s report, with the benchmark general index gaining 0.14 percent to 2,066.84 points. The general index lost 2.9 percent on the week, or 62.2 points. «The positive impact of US data gave European bourses a push and spilled over to us – that was the key element,» said analyst Elias Lazaris at Artion Securities. «And Moody’s played its role in Eurobank’s rise,» he added. The FTSE/ASE-20 index of blue chips gained 0.54 percent to 1,055.36 points. Mid-caps fell 0.44 percent with small-caps down 0.63 percent. Turnover was 82.43 million euros, with 16.5 million shares traded. Losers beat winners 188 to 111 while 58 shares were unchanged on 357 traded. (Reuters) «It’s good news for CCHBC as it’ll increase its free float from 35 percent to about 40 percent,» said Costas Tzoutzourakis at Devletoglou Securities. But analysts also said the timing was worrying, especially because the company’s sales in some key markets may face pressure in the second half.
