ATHEX: Banks index recovers this year's losses

The continued drop in sovereign bond yields and the growing effort to dress up portfolios before year-end saw the majority of stocks chalking up more gains on Friday, when trading surpassed the 100-million-euro mark for a second day. The banks index has now covered all of this year's losses.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index ended at 767.76 points, adding 0.02 percent to Thursday's 767.57 points. On a weekly basis it gained 3.65 percent.

The large-cap FTSE-26 index contracted 0.29 percent to 1,997.73 points, while small-caps expanded 2.31 percent. From Monday the large-cap index will become the FTSE-25 again, with the exit of Attica Bank, Fourlis and Ellaktor and the return of Terna Energy and EYDAP.

The banks index reached a new three-month high, topping Thursday's 6.79 percent growth with a 0.33 rise yesterday, largely thanks to Piraeus, which soared 5...