FTSE

Jitters over the upcoming rebalancing of the MSCI index and various domestic and international uncertainties were still in evidence on the Athens Exchange (ATHEX) on Wednesday. The picture that emerged pointed to quite negative medium-term prospects for Greek stocks should traders' fears of instability abroad materialize.

The euphoria over the Eurobank-Grivalia merger lasted just a few hours at the Greek bourse on Monday, as concerns over next week's rebalancing of the MSCI index, which may trigger a further outflow of investors, curtailed early gains and led the banks index into negative territory.

While turnover remained subdued on the Greek stock market on Friday following the Thanksgiving holiday in the US on Thursday, banks' 4 percent rise managed to take the benchmark back above the 600-point mark.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index ended at 602.60 points, adding 0.65 percent to Thursday's 598.73 points. On a weekly basis it conceded 3.69 percent.

Turnover on the Greek stock market was particularly low on Thursday owing to the Thanksgiving holiday in the US. The benchmark, the blue chip index and banks registered marginal losses although the majority of stocks headed higher.

The benchmark of the Athens Exchange (ATHEX) ended the day just shy of the 600-point mark as the market reacted to a five-day losing streak, the worst in almost three months.

Creditors' concerns about delays in the government's reforms, the continuing selloff in bank stocks, the rise in Greek bond yields and Monday's  drop on the New York Stock Exchange contributed toward another price slide at Athinon Avenue on Tuesday, when the main index tumbled to a new two-year low at the end of a fifth consecutive loss-making session.

Bank stocks fell to new lows on Monday, with their index reaching levels unseen since February 2016. The benchmark of the Greek bourse continued to sink closer to the 600-point mark, which is seen as the last line of defense before a more extensive selling spree.

Europe-wide concerns at the looming prospect of a British exit from the European Union without a prior agreement on terms have been affecting local stocks all week, and Friday was no exception, while the continuing sell-off of shares in the three banks that will exit the MSCI Standard index has taken the banks index down to a new 33-month low.

The shake-up of the MSCI indexes, the 1.7 percent jump in the 10-Greek bond yield and eurozone concerns over the impact of a "hard Brexit" weighed on the benchmark of the Greek stock exchange on Thursday while the bank stocks index sank to a new 33-month low.

The relegation of National Bank, Eurobank and Piraeus Bank from the MSCI Standard index for emerging markets into the MSCI Small Cap Index, from which Ellaktor has also been removed, had a significant impact on Wednesday's trading session at Athinon Avenue, hurting the prices not only of bank stocks but other sectors too.