Eurobank

March got off to a positive start on the Greek stock market, as the reserved optimism that the bailout review will eventually be concluded successfully was buoyed by Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos's statement about a staff-level agreement by March 20. Trading volume also posted a notable increase.

Stocks on the Athens bourse had a rather quiet start to the week on Tuesday, the same day that talks resumed on the second bailout review, with expectations remaining low for now. Trading volume only increased somewhat during the closing auctions.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 645.88 points, adding 0.08 percent to Friday's 645.37 points.

The three-week holiday forced upon Greek banks in July 2015, after the capital controls were imposed on June 28, has been the credit sector's main event to date since the outbreak of the economic crisis. This ongoing situation, a festering wound for banks, which mainly affects the return of deposits, is clearly reflected in stock prices.

Last year may have signaled the return of Greece's systemic banks to profit after six consecutive years of historically high losses, but the delay in the second bailout review and uncertainty about the course of the economy are reducing the momentum for a really robust 2017 in the sector.

Traders were clearly feeling optimistic about Monday's Eurogroup and the upcoming resumption of negotiations during the week's first bourse session at Athinon Avenue, giving bank stocks a respectable push, while the rest of the market remained split between winners and losers.

A Der Spiegel magazine report suggesting the International Monetary Fund plans to enter the Greek bailout program with up to 5 billion euros, offered a boost to Greek stocks at the end of the week, leading to significant gains across the board on the local bourse.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 639.46 points, adding 1.60 percent to Thursday's 629.36 points.

Bank stocks and PPC led Wednesday's price slump in the Greek stock market, though the fears of a continued deadlock in talks between Athens and its creditors through spring were somewhat contained by statements from European Commissioner Pierre Moscovici in Athens. This led to a stop-loss move in the last hour of trading, but market concerns remain.

Alpha, the Greek stock market's best performing bank in the last 12 months, led blue chips and the bourse benchmark to a third day of gains on Tuesday, although the second bailout review's eagerly awaited conclusion did not get any closer.

The Greek stock market is clearly reflecting investor anticipation of a positive outcome to the bailout review talks in the coming days, as it made additional gains on Monday to the significant jump recorded on Friday.

The prospect of an agreement between Athens and its creditors in Brussels on Friday fueled stock prices at Athinon Avenue and went some way toward dispelling the sense of despair that had culminated on Thursday. Bank investors finally had something positive to act on, leading the credit sector stocks to a rise of 6.61 percent. However, it wasn't enough to offset all of the week's losses.