Alpha Bank

The benchmark of the Greek stock market staged an impressive rebound late in Friday's session to come back from 1% down and close with gains of almost 1%. Banks led the way for the recovery of the index, though that was not enough to offset all its weekly losses.

September began at Athinon Avenue with concerns expressed by traders after the first hour related to the global economy and the fear of stagflation. That led the benchmark to losses of almost 1% and a drop below the 1,300-point mark on Friday.

The Athens Stock Exchange rose slightly on Thursday but could not scramble above 1,300 points, a level it has found difficult to sustain.

Investors made selective moves in some stocks and turnover was relatively low for a second session in a row.

The general index closed at 1,295.91 points, a 0.17% gain. Blue chips declined 0.11%, mid-caps gained 0.73% and banks slid 0.44%.

A favorable climate in European markets and investor interest in banks and several blue chips helped the Athens Stock Exchange return to the 1,300-point level on Tuesday.

Despite some selling towards the end, the general index gained 1.18% to close at 1,300.47 points on turnover of €92.9 million. Blue chips gained 1.34%, mid-caps 0.96% and banks 1.77%.

The stock market faced a selling wave among heightened concern about the Chinese economy and fears that interest rates will stay high in both Europe and the US for some time.

The ASE general index ended 1.57% lower to 1,263.34 on turnover of €85.66 million. It was the fourth consecutive weekly drop (1.83%), while banks fell 3.02%.

The aggressive selling of banks and other blue chips initially led the Athens stock market to lose as much as 1.8%. In the end, the general index ended up at 1,278.87 points, limiting its losses to 0.62%.

Blue chips lost 0.64%, mid-caps 0.50% and banks 1.19%, after being down as much as 3%.

A subdued session saw Greek stocks decline slightly on Thursday, in contrast to the gains in other European markets.

Most banks and blue chips faced selling pressure, but not excessively.

The ASE general index closed at 1,313.20 points, 0.30% lower on turnover of €84.9 million. Blue chips dropped 0.31%, mid-caps 0.24% and banks 0.13%.

Alpha Bank's normalized first-half after-tax profits - excluding non-recurring operating expenses and related transactions and taxes - reached €357 million, up 77.7% year-on-year, while, for the second quarter alone, they were €195 million, up 20.3% from the first quarter.

The Athens Stock Exchange posted mild gains on low turnover Wednesday, but underperformed European markets, which bounced bank after the Italian government watered down a plan for a windfall tax on banks.

The ASE general index closed at 1,317.18 points, up 0.46%, on turnover of €65.65 million. Blue chips gained 0.38% and mid-caps 0.15%, while banks declined 0.26%.

The Athens Stock Exchange posted minimal gains, with the positive news of the upgrading of Greece's debt by Scope Ratings balanced by the negative climate in other European markets.

The ASE general index ended 0.09% higher at 1,320.65 points, trading narrowly throughout the session. Turnover was €79 million.