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While Greek stocks contracted on a weekly basis, Friday’s closing auctions provided a happy ending, pushing the benchmark to it’s biggest daily rise in four months, while trading volume soared.

The growth of tourism this year has had a clear impact on unemployment in Greece as the jobless rate announced on Thursday by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) for the second quarter came to 26.6 percent.

Unemployment in Greece stood at 26.6 percent in the second quarter of 2014, compared to 27.8 percent in the previous quarter and 27.3 percent in the corresponding quarter of 2013, according to figures released by the Hellenic Statistical Authority, ELSTAT, on Thursday.

Greece’s unemployment rate dropped to 27 percent in June, compared to 27.1 percent in May, the country’s Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) announced on Thursday. The agency’s report showed that 1,303,884 people were out of work in June.

The Greek Manpower Organization (OAED) announced on Thursday a slight rise of 1.84 percent in its unemployment register in July, with figures pointing to 835,282 people, as opposed to 820,156 people the previous month.

By Dimitra Manifava

Supermarket sales in Greece recorded an increase for the second month in a row in July, amounting to 3.5 percent from July 2013, after June (+3.6 percent) was the first month that the sector had posted annual growth in two years.

This is seen as a sign that the sector is at last reverting to stability.

The momentum created at the Greek bourse on Thursday by the European Central Bank decisions to bolster growth in the eurozone continued on Friday, taking the benchmark close to 1,200 points at the end of a fourth consecutive week of gains. News of a ceasefire in Ukraine also helped.

By Stathis Kousounis

The big increase in the number of tourists visiting Greece has led to a 10 percent hike in hotel rates around the country this year compared with 2013, according to Hotels.com, one of the biggest travel booking websites in the world.

The Athens stock exchange general index rose – but by the tiniest of margins – for a seventh straight day on Wednesday as it hit 1,177.49 points, an increase of 0.01 percent.

The benchmark fluctuated within a 16-point range during Wednesday’s session and even edged up to 1,184.36 at one stage.

Turnover reached 93.25 million euros.

The Athens stock exchange general index headed upward for a sixth consecutive day on Tuesday, rising by 1.56 percent to 1,177.35 points.

This means that the benchmark has risen by a total of 8.36 percent over the last six sessions.

There was a big increase in the turnover during Tuesday’s session.

It reached 92.84 million euros, compared to 44.7 million on Monday.