ATHEX: Bourse ends week with 4.7% advance

The rally of bank stocks at Athinon Avenue on Friday added to the week's gains for the benchmark of the market, while mid-caps had a day of moderate gains given that foreign investors appear to be largely ignoring them.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index ended at 683.46 points, adding 2.04% to Thursday's 669.79 points. On a weekly basis it advanced 4.73%.

The large-cap FTSE 25 index expanded 2.52% to 1,651.89 points, but the mid-cap index grew only 1.25%.

The banks index jumped 8.07%, with Eurobank jumping 9.74%, Alpha growing 8.94%, National grabbing 6.73% and Piraeus improving 4.97%.

The opening of tourism from most countries as of July gave Aegean Air a 4.40% boost.

In total 72 stocks reported gains, 42 endured losses and 11 remained unchanged. Turnover amounted to 89.7 million euros, up from Thursday's €85.1 million.

The Greek...