Eurobank Ergasias

A late surge by banks and some other blue chips helped the benchmark of the Greek stock market remain on the upward course it start last Friday and close Monday's session with moderate growth, albeit with the smallest turnover in a week.

Thursday's bourse session at Athinon Avenue proved to be a so-called bull trap, as it attracted buyers at the start with the temporary gains recorded before stocks slumped to losses. This has made it five sessions of decline in a row, with the benchmark approaching the 1,400-point level. The day's action-packed session saw turnover improve considerably.

The domestic market is reacting, after the 4-day downward streak that preceded it, which was a result of the lack of positive catalysts. In contrast to previous days, Athens is tuning in today (12/9) to the rally in international stock markets. The resurgence of buying interest is driven by Wall Street’s tech rally, as well as the boost provided to euro markets by the ECB’s monetary easing.

The benchmark of the Greek stock market slumped on Wednesday to a new month-low, as it has completed four consecutive sessions of decline and traders showed no intention of containing its losses - which may point to more losses.

Greek stocks continued their decline on Tuesday, with the benchmark of the market containing its losses somewhat thanks to the reaction by Coca-Cola HBC (the stock with the highest capitalization on the bourse) and National Bank (following five straight southbound sessions).

For no obvious reason, except for the lack of buying interest, the Athens bourse started the week on particularly low turnover and losses for the majority of stocks. The market may be waiting for corporate developments before some cash flow is restored, a possibility being the upcoming Moody's rating verdict on Greece this Friday, or the European Central Bank meeting on Thursday.

Fitch Ratings has upgraded the credit ratings of Greece's four systemic banks - i.e. National Bank of Greece, Piraeus Bank, Alpha Bank and Eurobank.

This upgrade reflects the improved assessment of Greece's operating environment, now rated at BB+.

Not only did the benchmark of the Greek bourse recover all its Wednesday losses on Thursday, but it also did it on increased turnover, which confirmed that local stocks are gathering interest again this month. The rise in prices was led by non-bank blue chips, especially those in the energy sector, but extended across the market.

Fitch Ratings has upgraded Greece's 'big four' banks (National, Piraeus, Alpha, Eurobank), giving them all a positive outlook.

Foreign pressures brought prices down on the Greek stock market from the start of Wednesday's session, but many stocks reacted toward the end and contained their losses considerably. Likewise, the benchmark regained some of the ground lost over the course of the day and its decline upon the close will not concern observers, as it points to a likely rebound.