Eurobank

Stocks grew at Athinon Avenue on Tuesday for a third day in a row, with the benchmark closing on the day's high, as did the banks' index. It was once again the closing auctions that significantly improved the picture on the stock board, and they were responsible for the increased turnover, too. The market is now focusing on the interest rates verdict of the US Fed on Wednesday.

A late surge by banks and some other blue chips helped the benchmark of the Greek stock market remain on the upward course it start last Friday and close Monday's session with moderate growth, albeit with the smallest turnover in a week.

Credit ratings agency Moody's changed Eurobank's and National Bank's outlook for their Baa2 senior unsecured debt and long-term deposit ratings to positive from stable, "following the outlook change to positive from stable in the Government of Greece's Ba1 issuer rating."

Moody's is the only one among major credit ratings agencies that has not given Greece's debt an investment grade.

Thursday's bourse session at Athinon Avenue proved to be a so-called bull trap, as it attracted buyers at the start with the temporary gains recorded before stocks slumped to losses. This has made it five sessions of decline in a row, with the benchmark approaching the 1,400-point level. The day's action-packed session saw turnover improve considerably.

The Greek stock market, which shifted its tone following the ECB’s interest rate announcement, once again fell short of expectations. Although it initially aligned with global market trends, it eventually diverged, trailing behind the positive sentiment seen elsewhere.

The domestic market is reacting, after the 4-day downward streak that preceded it, which was a result of the lack of positive catalysts. In contrast to previous days, Athens is tuning in today (12/9) to the rally in international stock markets. The resurgence of buying interest is driven by Wall Street’s tech rally, as well as the boost provided to euro markets by the ECB’s monetary easing.

The benchmark of the Greek stock market slumped on Wednesday to a new month-low, as it has completed four consecutive sessions of decline and traders showed no intention of containing its losses - which may point to more losses.

Greek stocks continued their decline on Tuesday, with the benchmark of the market containing its losses somewhat thanks to the reaction by Coca-Cola HBC (the stock with the highest capitalization on the bourse) and National Bank (following five straight southbound sessions).

The inability of buyers to react showed today’s (10/9) third consecutive session of losses on the Greek stock market. Although initially the General Index had recovered above 1,440 points, sellers then took the reins again and led the market below 1,430 points.

For no obvious reason, except for the lack of buying interest, the Athens bourse started the week on particularly low turnover and losses for the majority of stocks. The market may be waiting for corporate developments before some cash flow is restored, a possibility being the upcoming Moody's rating verdict on Greece this Friday, or the European Central Bank meeting on Thursday.