Stocks grow as investors refuse to give in to fear

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) benchmark spent the entire day in the green on Wednesday as traders appear convinced a deal will be reached between Athens and its eurozone peers and refuse to give in to uncertainty, though early gains were contained over the course of trading.

The general index closed at 847.53 points, adding 1.06 percent to Tuesday?s 838.63 points. The large-cap FTSE/ATHEX 25 index expanded 1.08 percent to end at 250.73 points.

The bank index enjoyed a 5.65 percent rebound, with National Bank growing 6.78 percent, Eurobank advancing 6.12 percent, Piraeus climbing 4.87 percent and Alpha rising 4.26 percent. Hellenic Petroleum was the biggest winner, increasing 7.29 percent, while Folli Follie gave up 3.76 percent and OPAP gaming company declined 3 percent.

In total 75 stocks posted gains, 41 suffered losses and 19 stayed unchanged.

Turnover amounted to 131.8 million euros, down from Tuesday?s 141.2 million.