With slight losses, the Athens Stock Exchange ended the last session of an otherwise very positive January, sellers took the reins, but the growth of the banking index provided support.

A.A. Thus, it followed the European markets, which were slightly lower, and investors appreciated the new data, which showed that the eurozone economy showed a slight increase in the last quarter of 2022, contrary to contraction forecasts. However, according to analysts, this positive GDP surprise is technical in nature and is due to the development of several countries, which, in fact, “covers” the main weakness of the economy.

The overall index closed down 0.19% to 1022.82 points and turnover reached 156.7 million euros with several stakes (among others in Dimand, banks and OTE). The Large Cap Index closed down 0.35% at 2475.79 points, the Mid Cap Index closed at -0.55% at 1556.69 points, and the Banking Index closed up 1.81% at 773.31 points.

Of all the blue chips, Sarantis stands out with a profit of 5.48%, followed by Eurobank with +3.2% and Alpha Bank and Lamda Development with a profit of more than 2%. Mytilineos and OTE closed with over 3% losses, followed by Jumbo and TERNA Energy with over 2% losses.

Yesterday’s session was characterized by a high turnover, which reached 156.7 million, as there were several packages.

The banking sector was the protagonist of A.A. in January, recording an increase of 20.7% compared to +10% for the overall index.

Adding to the positive message for Greek banks was Fitch’s assessment, which on Monday “raised” Alpha Bank, Eurobank and Ethniki, and on Tuesday Piraeus by one level, and in a related online presentation noted that the factors that could lead to their further modernization are, among other things, in reducing the NPE ratio below 5% and their ability to generate high operating profits.

However, as Kyklos Chrimatistiraki’s Dimitris Tsanas points out, given the likelihood that the recession for the global economy will not be cured as geopolitical tensions persist, the visibility of macroeconomic data, and thus the course of international markets, remains low. In the scenario of the deterioration of the international situation, the position of independence of A.A. which fixed the January effect is likely to be reversed by a possible retreat in international markets.

Meanwhile, in a two-speed year at AA, NBG Securities said in a statement advising investors to be cautious and selective in the short term and before the election as the global macroeconomic outlook (inflation dynamics, central bank response and geopolitics) remains uncertain. However, market-friendly election results and investment-grade achievement will once again boost Greek equities in the second half of the year, also supported by rising corporate earnings and attractive valuations in many sectors.