Economy of Greece

Blue chips gave up some ground on Tuesday at the Greek stock market, although overall losing stocks matched the exact number of gainers on the day. The benchmark came off Monday's seven-week high with some gains cashed in by traders, while certain non-bank large-caps remained on an upward course for another day.

The main index at the Greek stock market climbed to a new seven-week high on Monday with banks and a few more blue chips leading the rest of the bourse higher on a day of relatively low turnover. The trend of the market remains upward after the previous months' decline, and the year-end window dressing promises even greater gains for local stocks.

A universal push higher by Greek stocks sent the benchmark of the local bourse to a six-week high on Thursday, as it smashed through the 1,200-point level with ease, outperforming most other eurozone markets. This was the fifth consecutive session of gains for the main index at Athinon Avenue, with a notable increase in turnover too.

Short-term rentals (STRs) booked through online marketplaces comprise 21.5% of all overnight stays by tourists in Greece and make a great contribution to the country's gross domestic product, according to a research report presented by Professor George Doukidis at the Prodexpo Real Estate Conference on Thursday.

We were very late in succeeding, but, even now it is recognized that the sacrifices and reforms made in the last 10 years in Greece following the country's debt crisis have had a positive effect. That is why two international rating agencies have recently removed Greek bonds from the "junk" category and upgraded them to investment status.

The impact of inflation and rising interest rates on first-half corporate results of listed companies continues to put pressure on stock prices at Athinon Avenue, as the benchmark of the Greek bourse suffered fresh losses on Wednesday.

Tuesday saw the benchmark at Athinon Avenue avoid another decline as it held on to some of its gains and ended the day in the black and on a week-high, albeit on reduced turnover. On Wednesday the Greek bourse is entering the three-day period for the floating of Optima, the first bank to be listed on the Greek stock market since the end of the financial crisis.

DBRS Morningstar upgraded Greece's credit rating to investment level on Friday, ending the country's bonds "junk status" after 13 years.

The Canadian-based rating agency, one of the world's four majors, became on Friday the first to bring Greece back to investment level since 2010.

The benchmark of the Greek stock market staged an impressive rebound late in Friday's session to come back from 1% down and close with gains of almost 1%. Banks led the way for the recovery of the index, though that was not enough to offset all its weekly losses.

Greece's trade deficit shrank by 21% in July as imports fell more than exports in the month, the Hellenic Statistical Authority said in a report on the country's merchandise trade.

The value of imports totaled 6.721 billion euros in July, down 17% from July 2022 (excluding oil products, imports fell 3.9%, while excluding oil products and ships, imports fell 4%).