Greek stocks rise for a fourth week

The momentum created at the Greek bourse on Thursday by the European Central Bank decisions to bolster growth in the eurozone continued on Friday, taking the benchmark close to 1,200 points at the end of a fourth consecutive week of gains. News of a ceasefire in Ukraine also helped.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index ended at 1,197.11 points, adding 1.33 percent to Thursday’s 1,181.41 points. On a weekly basis the index advanced 3.04 percent.

The large-cap FTSE/ATHEX 25 index expanded by 1.14 percent to close at 388.54 points.

Piraeus Bank outperformed, securing gains of 6.80 percent, but it was non-banking blue chips that drew the bulk of investor interest, while credit stocks had been the focus of traders’ attention on previous days.

Titan Cement climbed 5.15 percent, Motor Oil grew 4.61 percent and Hellenic Petroleum expanded 4.51 percent. Coca Cola HBC lost 2.64 percent.

In total 83 stocks registered gains, 43 sustained losses and 12 remained unchanged. Turnover amounted to 126.8 million euros, up from Thursday’s 108.7 million.