ATHEX: Ongoing talks vex investors

The benchmark at Athinon Avenue continued to reflect the nervousness of a market held hostage to the protracted negotiations between representatives of the Greek government and the country's creditors in Brussels ahead of Friday's Eurogroup meeting, with stocks posting a small decline on Tuesday on limited turnover.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 666.44 points, shedding 0.13 percent from Monday's 667.36 points. The large-cap FTSE 25 index dropped 0.01 percent to 1,782.18 points.

Banks continued their decline, giving up 1.20 percent, with Piraeus falling 2.38 percent and National sliding 2.05 percent. The FTSE 25 losses were minimized mainly thanks to gains posted by OPAP (1.36 percent), Grivalia Properties (1.10 percent) and Jumbo (1.07 percent). Viohalco decreased 3.30 percent and Sarantis was down 1.90 percent.

In total 42 stocks reported...