TSIPRAS: For some, the successive revelations in recent days of cases involving basketball, Pizza Fun, Horiatiko Bread and the ‘Playground’ NGO are too numerous to be explained as coincidental police successes.
For Alexis Tsipras, they mean something else: “As the boat sinks under the weight of corruption, Mr Mitsotakis is jettisoning the dead weight, throwing ballast overboard to save himself,” he said yesterday in an interview with BEST, a television station in the Peloponnese.
“But he is doing it so clumsily that it makes it even more obvious how unmoored he and his government are,” he added, linking the jettisoning … of the dead weight to the run-up to the general election and the high place corruption occupies in opinion polls.
The former prime minister’s criticism was also aimed at the head of the Independent Authority for Public Revenue, George Pitsilis, because the involvement of 25 officials from the authority in the ‘business’ of Horiatiko had gone undetected by him.
“Lower-level services at the authority had sent briefings and proposals on how to handle the issue as early as June 2025,” he alleged.
He therefore asked why the prime minister had renewed Mr Pitsilis’s term for a third consecutive time, when the law provided for two terms.
The ELAS leader is toughening his rhetoric, and the clash with the prime minister’s office is expected to dominate in the coming period, according to well-informed sources.
PASOK: Harilaou Trikoupi, as a party represented in parliament (unlike the newly formed ELAS, which is not), is opting for a forceful political tone, paired with legislative initiatives.
After its bill on private debt, it is preparing similar proposals on healthcare and the housing problem, while planning events for people with disabilities and those living with chronic illnesses.
Private debt remains at the top of its priorities — particularly after the withdrawal of ‘Article 23’ on non-performing loans — and for that reason Nikos Androulakis will take the floor in parliament tomorrow “to lay into them”, according to his aides.
SYRIZA: Just as expected, Syriza has had 12 MPs since yesterday, after MP Zoe Anastassopoulou was sworn in (and … stayed with the party). As the runner-up on the party list in Ilia, she took the seat from Dionysis Kalamatianos, who resigned to join ELAS.
By contrast, George Varemenos was sworn in after Miltos Zambaras resigned (he, too, resigned to stand by Alexis Tsipras) but immediately became an independent. He had left Syriza after the election of Stefanos Kasselakis, joining the New Left, which co-founder Efi Achtsioglou has since left to join ELAS.
According to some wagging tongues (or helpful ones, depending on your view…), if Nasos Iliopoulos also resigns as an MP (he was elected with Syriza), the seat will go to Nikos Voutsis, who had also joined the New Left but now appears to be leaning towards returning to Syriza.
The same tongues say Panos Skourletis may do likewise. He was next in line in the Northern Sector constituency and joined the New Left; if Athena Linou resigns as an MP, he could take her seat.
Feeling dizzy? So are we…
GOLD: It hit a record high of $5,595 in January, but fell below $3,900 last Friday, down 30% from its peak. So while several investment banks saw gold above $6,000 at the start of the year, they have all lowered their forecasts.
Goldman Sachs sees $4,650 at the end of 2026 and $5,400 at the end of 2027. UBS sees $4,600 in December and $5,400 in September 2027. CIBC made the biggest cut, from $6,500 to $4,500 for the final quarter.
The ‘average view’ looks more… measured. In a Reuters poll of 30 analysts, the average price for 2026 is estimated at $4,495. That figure is almost ‘locked in’, of course, as ten months have already passed.
So the more interesting figure is the projected average price for 2027, now put at $4,650 — well below the $5,400 forecast by Goldman and UBS.
In short, almost everyone sees a recovery, but disagrees on how much.
GOLD II: Americans go to the polls to elect the House and the Senate on Tuesday, 3 November. Prediction markets put the Democrats’ chances of winning the House of Representatives at about 94% and the Senate at 72%. In other words, the result is largely priced in. A Republican victory would be a surprise for Trump.
The World Gold Council notes that, historically, gold does not react to the result at the ballot box, but to the policies that follow. It sees three potential sources of support for gold in a Congress with stronger Democratic representation.
First, a curtailment of funding for the war in Iran. De-escalation would likely mean cheaper oil and less inflationary pressure, prompting the Fed to halt rate rises or even cut rates, while also weakening the dollar.
Second, tighter regulation of artificial intelligence could weigh on technology shares and growth, pushing yields and the dollar lower.
Third, institutional clashes between Congress and the White House are possible, raising uncertainty to the benefit of gold.
There is a risk on the other side, however. Congress could block laws that widen the deficit. Expectations of a lower deficit would then strengthen the dollar and weigh on gold.
The irony is that the war in Iran, which would normally support a safe haven such as gold, has proved its biggest adversary, because high energy costs are keeping interest-rate expectations elevated.
The question, then, is not who will win the US elections, but whether the result will change the balance of forces that currently favour the dollar and weigh on gold.
MARINAKIS: Capital Clean Energy Carriers (CCEC), a shipping company linked to Vangelis Marinakis, has five newly built LNG carriers without employment secured, and is looking to capitalise on an expected recovery in the charter market from 2028.
As the company’s chief commercial officer and head of its LNG division, Nikos Tripodakis, told analysts during a results briefing, CCEC has the largest portfolio of ‘open’ LNG carriers among its competitors.
Of the 287 vessels in the global LNG carrier fleet, 42 newbuilds have yet to secure employment, five of which are controlled by Capital Clean.
Management expects the market to face a shortage of available capacity from 2028. By contrast, 2026 and the first half of 2027 will be a transitional period, putting pressure on long-term charters. Daily rates that were approaching $90,000 around 18 months ago are now close to $80,000.
The company is therefore avoiding locking its fleet into long-term fixed-rate charters at a time when it believes prices are near their lows, opting instead, among other things, for contracts linked to market indices.
Mr Tripodakis also made a particularly notable point about the crisis in the Middle East. The high insurance cost of transiting the Strait of Hormuz — more than $10m for modern vessels, compared with $2m-$3m for older steam-powered LNG carriers — has created a new employment opportunity for the latter.
The expectation is that, once the situation normalises, their retirement will accelerate, further strengthening the market outlook.
EUROBANK: Eurobank and Inbank, a financial technology company with an EU banking licence, established a joint venture in September to develop embedded finance solutions in Greece through buy now, pay later (BNPL) products, sales financing and consumer credit.
The joint venture is called INE Embedded Finance Credit Provision S.A., with each shareholder holding a 50% stake in its initial share capital of €8.5m. The start of operations as a credit provider is subject to approval by the competent authorities.
QUALCO: Shareholders of Qualco are being asked to approve a buyback programme of up to 4,000,000 shares, equivalent to 5.71% of its share capital, at a minimum purchase price of €4 and a maximum of €15.
Shareholders are also being asked to approve an amendment to the group’s long-term incentive scheme for executives, adding the option of awarding treasury shares alongside the existing option of issuing new shares through the capitalisation of reserves.
TITAN: Optima Bank forecasts a resilient performance for the group in the third quarter of 2026, despite pressure from a weak US housing market and higher operating costs.
Ahead of the Q3 results due next Thursday before the market opens, the broker maintains its Buy recommendation and €64.2 price target, implying 35% upside, keeping the stock among its top picks for the second half.
For the third quarter, it forecasts revenue of €769m, up 12.4%, EBITDA of €174.2m, down 6.7%, and comparable net profit of €87.6m.
For the first nine months, sales are forecast to rise 8.8% to €2.19bn, EBITDA to increase 2.7% to €486.2m, and net profit to grow 5.2% to €234.2m.
Optima expects a stronger fourth quarter, driven by acquisitions in the US, Turkey and France, as well as a more favourable foreign-exchange comparison. Higher energy costs are squeezing margins, however, while high interest rates are weighing on US housing demand.
Despite the challenges, the broker considers the group’s valuation attractive. It trades at an EV/EBITDA multiple of 6.5 times for 2026 and 5.6 times for 2027.
COCA-COLA HBC: Eurobank Equities forecasts a positive performance for Coca-Cola HBC in the third quarter of 2026, with revenue expected to reach €3.5bn, up 9.4% year on year or 8.7% on an organic basis.
Growth is expected to be supported by a 5.1% increase in sales volumes and an expansion of organic revenue per case of around 3.5 percentage points.
According to the broker’s forecasts, growth will remain broad-based, led by emerging markets, where organic revenue is projected to rise 11%. As a result, nine-month organic growth is estimated to approach 9%, comfortably exceeding management’s full-year target of 6%-7%.
Eurobank Equities nevertheless expects growth to slow in the fourth quarter because of four fewer selling days and higher costs.
Investors will focus during the management briefing on delivery of the full-year targets, market trends in the final quarter and progress towards completing CCBA, which is expected by the end of 2026.
Coca-Cola HBC has scheduled its trading update for Wednesday, 4 November, before the market opens.
It stood out on the market board yesterday, closing up 2.5% (€57.5) despite broader market pressure.
BANK OF CYPRUS: Axia – Alpha Finance forecasts another strong quarterly performance for the bank ahead of its third-quarter results, due on Thursday, 5 November, before the market opens.
Specifically, it expects net profit of €119m and pre-provision income of €158m, with performance underpinned by resilient revenue, cost discipline and good asset quality.
Net interest income is expected to reach €196m, up 9% year on year and 4% quarter on quarter, while fee income is forecast to rise 6% to €48m. Total revenue is estimated at €269m, up 4%.
Operating expenses are expected to come in at €111m, with the quarterly increase mainly due to the special levy. Loan-loss provisions are expected to normalise at €8m. The non-performing exposures ratio is forecast to remain at a particularly low 1%, with coverage of 148%.
As for the balance sheet, loans are estimated at €11.4bn and deposits at €23.5bn, keeping the loan-to-deposit ratio close to 50%. The CET1 ratio is expected to remain strong at 20.7%, despite credit growth and the inclusion of a 70% profit distribution.
According to Axia – Alpha Finance, investors will focus on the scope for further growth in net interest income, opportunities for bolt-on acquisitions and management’s first indications on the distribution of 2026 profits.
In particular, attention is on the possibility of an additional distribution of up to 20%, on top of the regular payout of 70%, which could further boost shareholder returns.
METLEN: There is a date that makes the METLEN-Shell LNG supply agreement considerably more interesting than just another commercial deal: 2027.
Supply of the six cargoes a year will begin then, just as the European market enters the final phase of weaning itself off Russian natural gas.
The EU has already formalised plans to bring Russian LNG imports gradually and permanently to an end from late 2026, and pipeline gas in autumn 2027, with only limited scope for an extension until 1 November.
This may be the key point: energy security, which Evangelos Mytilineos has repeatedly spoken about, must be safeguarded before the need arises.
From 2027, METLEN has locked in around 0.6 bcm of LNG a year for five years, mainly from Shell’s US portfolio, at a time when Europe will need to have definitively secured alternative supply routes.
It is unclear where prices will be then. But we know that when the supply-chain map changes, those who have already anticipated the shifts are always the ones who benefit.