ATHEX: Benchmark climbs to four-week high

The relief from the French election results, which may have led to a hung parliament but have also banished the prospect of a far-right cabinet, gave stock buyers an extra push on Monday at the Greek bourse, leading the benchmark to highs unseen in four weeks upon closing, on improved turnover too. Nevertheless, the unstable outlook in France coupled with that in the US may well prove to lead to a turbulent stock fall after the summer holidays.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 1,450.92 points, adding 0.72% to Friday's 1,440.52 points. The large-cap FTSE-25 index expanded 0.66%, ending at 3,540.22 points.

The banks index grew 0.40%, on Piraeus rising 1.69% and Alpha grabbing 1.50%, while National gave up 0.55% and Eurobank parted with 0.28%. Titan Cement jumped 3.81%, and OTE telecom augmented 1.92%, as Terna Energy shed 1.79%.

In total 55...