Swiss Stock Market Extends Winnings Streak

The Swiss stock market closed to the upside again on Thursday, extending its winning streak to three sessions and gathering almost 160 points or 1.5 percent along the way.

The SMI bounced back and forth across the unchanged line before late support pushed it firmly into the green, benefitting from a batch of European economic data that strengthened an optimistic outlook for interest rates.

For the day, the index gained 54.11 points or 0.48 percent to finish at the daily high of 11,224.37 after trading as low as 11,139.16.

Among the actives, SGS surged 3.57 percent, while UBS Group jumped 1.72 percent, Novartis rallied 1.37 percent, Zurich Insurance sank 1.06 percent, Roche Holding climbed 0.99 percent, ABB advanced 0.97 percent, Swiss Re added 0.86 percent, Swiss Life gained 0.62 percent, Nestle lost 0.53 percent and Swisscom rose 0.39 percent.

The market responded positively to higher inflation figures from France and Germany, as well as Eurozone private sector data that investors hope will encourage central banks to pare back interest rates.

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