Greek shares plunge as stock market reopens

Greek stocks suffered a dramatic fall in the reopening of the Athens Stock Exchange which remained closed for five weeks since the imposition of capital controls on bank transactions. The composite index of the market fell 22.81 pct immediately after the opening of the session, with the bank index falling 23.34 pct and all bank shares locked at the day’s limit down.

Traders said the market was assessing a new situation in the banking sector, while analysts said this was a special type session. The market is operating with significant limitations for Greek investors, while foreign investors -holders of a 58.41 pct of the market’s capitalization and accounting around 60 pct of daily turnover- are free of any limitation.

The last trading session of the Athens Stock Exchange was on Friday 26 June. The composite index ended 2.03 pct in the day and up 16.03 pct in the week, as the market discounted an agreement with the country’s creditors.