In the wake of the cabinet reshuffle –with the replacement of the Minister of Finance standing out-, the agreement between France and Germany on the Greek debt problem has been the positive catalyst to provide an upward surge in Athens market on Friday.
To the extent, that Franco-German axis removes uncertainties over European developments about the new rescue program to Greece, the Athens Exchange can move upwards, and –under certain condition- reverse the short-term downward trend, according to market analysts.
However, they note that the public statements of European officials remain unclear and sometimes confusing. In any case, the market awaits for final details of such an agreement, but they are still unknown.
In this context, Athens Exchange weighs up also the domestic political developments. Analyst didn’t enthuse over the cabinet reshuffle but comment that it leaves room for optimism about the possibility of changes in the implementation of economic policy, following the appointment of a new FinMin, Evangelos Venizelos.
“With the appointment of Venizelos, the market really jumped," a local trader told Dow Jones Newswires. "I think many investors felt it was important to have a change at the finance ministry."
Across the board, the General Index ended at 1,254.02 units, with profits of 3.80%, moving into positive territory throughout the trading session. Intraday profits reached 5.33%, while it managed to end with a positive sign for week, with marginal profits of 0.13%.
Banks moved violently upwards, with intraday profits reaching 9.69%. They ended at 971.02 units, up 7.82%, posting cumulative profits of 2.49% for week. Proton Bank stood out, with gains of 12.50% at €0.54, Eurobank and Marfin Popular Bank rose by 9.31% and 8.62% at €3.17 and €0.63 respectively, while National Bank soared by 8.45%
Approximately 51.24 million units worth €145.28 million traded on Friday, while a total amount of 121 shares rose, 26 declined and 133 remained unchanged.
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