BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The Swiss stock market ended Tuesday's session with a slight increase. The market remained in a tight range throughout the session, between 8,230 and 8,270 points. Following yesterday's pullback and the 2 percent drop during the previous trading week, the market recovered a bit of ground today.
Investors remain cautious as they keep an eye on the actions of the new Trump administration in the United States. The British Supreme Court also ruled today that the government cannot trigger Article 50 without an act of parliament authorizing it to do so.
The Swiss Market Index increased by 0.21 percent Tuesday and finished at 8,246.66. The Swiss Leader Index climbed 0.21 percent and the Swiss Performance Index added 0.10 percent.
Shares of Aryzta were in focus Tuesday. The bakery firm's stock plunged 32 percent after it warned of a significant profit decline. The warning was mainly due to its weak performance in North America.
Actelion gave back nearly all of its gains from the previous session. The stock dropped by 3.3 percent Tuesday, after climbing 3.4 percent on Monday. The pullback followed the release of quarterly earnings from Johnson & Johnson, which is trying to acquire Actelion.
Among the index heavyweights, Novartis dropped 0.7 percent and Roche lost 0.3 percent. Novartis is due to report financial results on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Nestlé finished higher by 0.3 percent.
LafargeHolcim was among the top performing stocks of the session, with an increase of 3.5 percent. Schindler climbed 1.8 percent, Sika gained 1.3 percent and SGS added 1.2 percent.
Julius Baer was the top performer among the banks, with an increase of 2.2 percent. UBS advanced 2.0 percent and Credit Suisse rose 1.1 percent.
In the broad market, Aevis dropped 2.6 percent after it launched a takeover offer for LifeWatch. LifeWatch surged 8.5 percent.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX