support level of 1600 for the first time since late January, closing at session’s low on Thursday.
Banks outperformed and dragged the market down as they dominated the trading activity with 62% of the total turnover.
Analyst attribute banks’ recent heavy losses to the investors’ frustration as their expectations for a National Bank –Alpha Bank were unmet.
"This is a mild correction as local macros and EU bail-out expectations do not provide support. And the poor international equity sentiment is also weighing," Natasa Martseki, director of institutional sales at Alpha Finance told Dow Jones Newswires.
"Eurobank 4Q results post the close are in focus but they are unlikely to surprise," she added.
Pegasus remained cautious in its morning report, “considering that it would be wiser not to increase our position at current levels, but to remain with a balanced portfolio (cash/equities: 50/50) in order to be best positioned for all possible events”.
ATE Securities anticipated another volatile session in our domestic market, with adverse international environment mitigated by M&A’s expectations in the domestic banking sector.
Across the board, the General Index fell by 1.83%, at 1599.97 units in a turnover of EUR125.76mn. A total amount of 124 shares declined, 118 remained unchanged and 42 rose.
Among banks, Hellenic Postbank and National Bank suffered severe pressures, falling by 6.1% and 5.14%, while Bank of Cyprus and ATE Bank followed with losses of 4.98% and 3.66% respectively. Attica Bank and Eurobank declined by 3.54% and 3.25% respectively.
Across FTSE20, OPAP stood out, with gains of 2.11%, while Coca-Cola 3E and Hellenic Petroleum rose by 0.56% and 0.14% respectively. Mytilineos and Ellaktor posted losses of 5.0.5% and 3.4%.
source: CAPITAL
