GEK

The reserved optimism coming from Brussels about a decision on Monday in favor of the disbursement of the long-anticipated bailout tranche of 2.8 billion euros helped the Greek stock market register small gains on Friday, led as usual by bank stocks.

The Greek bourse saw sellers focus on its non-bank stocks on Thursday, leading to notable losses for its benchmark.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 566.58 points, shedding 1.47 percent from Wednesday's 575.06 points. The large-cap FTSE 25 index contracted 1.68 percent to end at 1,524.17 points, though small-caps rose 1.26 percent.

The notable growth recorded during Tuesday's trading session, which saw the benchmark climb above the 650-point mark for a few hours, was reversed by a late selling spree in banks, although the main index still ended the session with gains. Trading volume was particularly high, mainly thanks to the MSCI index rebalancing.

Three out of the eight parties interested in purchasing a majority stake in Thessaloniki Port Authority (OLTH) have dropped out of the race, as only five of the original candidates have responded to a new invitation for expressions of interest by state privatization fund TAIPED.

The handful of traders who took an interest in the Athens stock market on Monday only did so to ease out of the bourse amid growing concerns that capital controls may be imposed as a deal between Greece and its creditors remains elusive. Trading was also at a record-low due to the public holiday in most European countries, on top of the prolonged uncertainty over the talks.

Measured optimism that the market may have seen the worst yet generated early gains at the local bourse on Wednesday, but the changes imposed on the MSCI index setup regarding Greek chips left the benchmark virtually unchanged from the previous day at the end of the session.

Traders hailed the government?s facing up to reality and conceding to the demands of the country?s creditors, as the Greek stock market enjoyed another day of healthy growth that came on an increased turnover too.

Declining blue chips dragged the benchmark of the Greek bourse lower on Tuesday, as the various scenarios regarding proposals and counterproposals placed on the negotiating table by Athens and its creditors appeared to confuse investors instead of inspiring them at the start of the four-day trading week.

The Athens bourse?s recent spurt of growth came to an end on Wednesday. The benchmark closed at its lowest point of the session, with losses of 1 percent, as investors chose to cash in some of their gains from the previous five sessions of growth. The declines on a number of other European markets also played a role.

The local stock market reacted positively on Monday after the government?s negotiating team was reshuffled ? in a move that appears to have sidelined the much-criticized Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis ? taking the benchmark close to 800 points in what was the fourth consecutive session of gains for most stocks.