European stock markets were in shades of red, with the Greek market deep in the red.
Last night’s sell-off on Wall Street, which hit Asian markets, is also dragging the major European markets lower. Despite the premium in New York futures, sellers have been in control in Frankfurt, Paris and London since the start of the session. The pressure is even greater on the “thin” Euronext Athens market.
S&P 500 futures were up 0.63% at 7,372 points, while the DAX stood at 25,921, down 1.51%; the CAC 40 at 8,108, down 1.08%; and the FTSE 100 at 10,167, down 1.27%.
In London, buying has emerged in Coca-Cola Hellenic shares, which rose as much as 2.12%, possibly as part of routine “buy the dip” trades. The EuroStoxx Banks index, however, stood at 288.06, down 0.75%, tilting the balance towards sellers on the Greek market.
The trend was clearly towards selling even before the opening, with orders in all four systemic banks pointing to lower prices. The first orders came in with the banking index at 3,074 points, opening with a wide gap down as Piraeus, National Bank, Eurobank and Alpha Bank came under selling pressure.
Sell orders were also seen in Bank of Cyprus, Optima Bank and Credia Bank.
It was also clear before the opening that Coca-Cola HBC shares had a queue of orders awaiting execution, leaving them trading in a range of €49.15-€50.50.
Turnover stood at €39.74 million after half an hour, with 4.9 million shares traded, including 4.1 million bank shares. With all 25 of the FTSE 25’s 25 constituents in the red through to 11:00, buyers made their first attempt to push Athens International Airport shares into positive territory. At €11.94, it was the index’s only constituent in positive territory at 11:05.
Supply remained steady, while (potential) buyers did not appear to be in a hurry to take positions, expecting opportunities at slightly lower levels as the session progressed. It remains to be seen whether that stance holds, with the focus on the period up to 14:00-14:30, when a number of orders from London enter the system.
The positive/negative share count stood at 10/89, indicative of the broader market stance, particularly among short-term investors.
Continuous data updates and coverage of the session from Ekivolos’ “basement”.