The Greek stock market found itself in downward territory for the second consecutive day, falling back below 1,440 points, but keeping this critical threshold in close proximity. Athens failed to coordinate and went “against” the favorable sentiment of the international markets. Stabilizing trends on the board, with the General Index moving in a range of just 9 points.

Specifically, in Monday’s (9/9) session, it recorded a loss of 8.96 points or -0.62% to close at 1,434.17 points, which was the low of the day. At 1,443.16 points was the high of the day. Trading remained sluggish, with turnover at very low levels.

Signs of accumulation remain strong, with no risk appetite and with investor interest waning. Sellers focused more on securities coming from strong upward series, such as Jumbo in blue chips and Profile in mid caps.

Heavy losses for Motor Oil, Metlen and ElvalHalcor, while Titan set “mounds”, heading full steam ahead for record levels of 33 euros. Special mention for Kri Kri, which extended its all-time high with today’s “jump”. Pressure was put on ADMIE as it “cut” its dividend.

Need to increase turnover – Investors are looking in many directions

The 1,450 points remain out of reach, which have the potential to pave the “way” for a return to the 13-year record of 1,500+ points. For a return to these levels, an increase in trading activity is necessary, analysts stress. Banks remain firmly on the investment “radar” after the barrage of positive reports and price-target upgrades by international rating agencies. At the same time, investors are “weighing” the new measures announced by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis from the podium of the 88th TIF.

Next Thursday (12/9), the ECB’s management meets, where it is expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points, from 3.75% to 3.5%. All eyes, however, are on the Federal Reserve which will make crucial decisions a week later (17-18 September). This is because the US central bank and global monetary policy “regulator” is set to cut interest rates from a record 5.25% to 5.5%. The question remains whether the “knife” in interest rates will be in the range of 25 or 50 basis points.

In the rest of the world, DBRS did Greece a favor by maintaining the rating at “BBB” (low) and upgrading the trend from stable to positive. This bodes well ahead of Moody’s rating on Friday (13/9). Recall that the US house (which rates Greece at “Ba1” with a stable outlook) is the only one that has not yet given the investment grade. As for the outlook upgrade by DBRS, it reflects the Canadian house’s expectations for further improvement in the banking system’s fundamentals.

A plethora of corporate results are expected this week. Athens International Airport and Fourlis will start on Tuesday (10/9), followed by Aegean and ElvalHalcor on Wednesday (11/9) and then Lamda Development, Alpha Trust – Andromeda and General Commerce and Industry on Thursday (12/9). Without the dividend entitlement of 0.058 euros per share, ADMIE was trading today, with payment scheduled for September 16.

Rebound in international markets

The New York Stock Exchange is on a recovery track, with the three major indices up more than +1%. September started on the left for Wall Street, as the S&P 500 posted its worst weekly performance since March 2023 and the Nasdaq since January 2022. The string of weak data formed an overall negative picture for the US economy.

Rebound for European markets as well, after their worst week since early last August. Traders are resisting the pressure coming from the US, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 up +0.95%. Indeed, they are “ramping up” as time goes on. Gains of between +1.1% and +1.3% are seen in the other major indices of the Old Continent.

A strong decline was seen in Asian stock markets, which could not escape the norm after the widespread liquidations in the US last Friday. Japan and Hong Kong markets were targeted by sellers, with the key Nikkei and Hang Seng indices down -0.7% and -1.4%, respectively. “Thorns” are the new GDP data for Japan and those for inflation in China.