‘Weak’ profits on the Stock Exchange

The Athens Stock Exchange went through 40 waves today, which finally managed to close positively, but not to give the message that the reasons given by the previous six-day downward series have disappeared.

In particular, the General Index closed with an increase of 0.19% to 860.85 points, while today it moved between 873.35 points (1.65%) and 848.84 points (1.20%). The turnover amounted to 105.09 million euros and the volume to 38.59 thousand units, while 396.64 thousand units were traded through pre-agreed transactions.

The index of high capitalization closed with an increase of 0.40%, at 2,075.86 points, while at -0.14% Mid Cap completed the transactions at 1,393.18 points. The banking index closed with losses of 0.23% at 577.02 points.

The protagonist is nervousness

Coca Cola’s contribution was a catalyst today so that the market could find the support against the intense nervousness and volatility it showed, especially with the constant sign changes in most titles. The contribution of the international climate was also important, with the markets in both Europe and the USA trying to break the downward cycle today, which has brought most of the indices to the limits of the bear market.

The current nervousness has been linked by several analysts from the upcoming announcements for the restructuring of the MSCI indicators of the six-month review, which are expected on Thursday. The possible changes will be implemented on June 1, 2022, while in the previous meeting of the implementation the trading activity appears increased, as the investors who follow the indices take their positions both in terms of changes in shares and weights.

And all this at a time when JP Morgan emphasizes that the medium-term outlook for Greek banks has improved significantly and “normalcy” is possible. However, the concern is that from now on the industry may develop into an average banking story with “little growth and some return on capital”, limiting stock prices below fair value levels.

The degree of risk increases

It is undeniable that the degree of risk has risen sharply, with the Greek ten-year bond now approaching even the 3.6% zone, indicative of the folding of many funds into safer assets. As the certified analyst Petros Steriotis points out today, persistently high inflation measurements in the Eurozone increase market estimates for a rise in intervention rates to positive ground, which has a strong negative impact on Greek government and corporate bonds and to domestic consumers and businesses.

According to him, the continuing concerns about the “abnormal landing” of global growth, which have led the Nasdaq to a one-year low, could not leave the ATHEX unaffected, with the DG moving to a low of “just” 6 weeks. Unfortunate is the international situation for Athens Avenue, which could not fully capitalize on positive catalysts, such as the remarkable announcements of profitability and dividends from several listed companies, the inflows due to the long-awaited changes in the MSCI indices and the optimism for its dynamics.

On the board

On the board now, Jumbo, Coca Cola and Sarantis recorded gains of more than 3%, while gains in Hellenic Petroleum, ELHA and Aegean were over 2% and over 1% in OPAP, EYDAP and Eurobank. IPTO, Titan, Mytilineos, Lambda, Ellactor and OTE moved slightly upwards.

On the other hand, Terna Energy lost 4.14%, with GEK Terna closing at -2.12%. The drop in Piraeus, Quest, Motor Oil and Alpha Bank was over 1%, while PPC, PPA, Viohalco and Ethniki closed slightly lower.