ATHEX: Stock price slide gathers momentum

After slipping off sellers' radar in recent days, banks were back at the forefront on Wednesday as local stocks headed south in the strongest sign to date that investors are simply not convinced that the Greek economy is set to stage a full recovery.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index ended at 830.21 points, shedding 1.52 percent from Tuesday's 843.05 points. The large-cap FTSE-26 index fell 1.32 percent to 2,159.36 points.

Rumors of an upcoming reverse split of the Piraeus Bank stock led to a 6.49 percent contraction that contributed toward a 4.27 percent drop for the banks index. Attica gave up 5.36 percent, Eurobank conceded 4.50 percent, Alpha decreased 3.54 percent and National was down 3.49 percent.

A handful of blue chips resisted the pressure and registered gains, led by Sarantis (up 2.48 percent), Fourlis Holdings (2.31 percent) and Coca-Cola HBC ...