BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The Swiss stock market ended Thursday's session with a small increase, following two days of losses. After a weak start, the market spent much of the day in negative territory, but managed to turn positive in the afternoon.
The late recovery was driven by early gains on Wall Street and some positive U.S. economic data. Traders also reacted positively to the news that President Trump has appointed Larry Kudlow as his new economic advisor.
The Swiss Market Index increased by 0.11 percent Thursday and finished at 8,878.98. The Swiss Leader Index climbed 0.66 percent and the Swiss Performance Index added 0.68 percent.
Index heavyweight Roche dropped 3.3 percent after the stock began trading on an ex-dividend basis.
Dufry sank 6.2 percent after it reported results for the full year 2017. The travel retailer's profit was far below expectations due to a higher tax burden.
Vifor Pharma jumped 5.2 percent after it released its first full year report since Galenica split into two independent businesses. Sales for the year were roughly in line, while profit came in slightly better than expected.
Swiss Life advanced 2.0 percent, Baloise climbed 2.1 percent, Zurich Insurance rose 1.5 percent and Swiss Re added 1.4 percent. Julius Baer increased 1.9 percent, UBS gained 1.6 percent and Credit Suisse added 1.0 percent.
Lonza and Richemont also finished higher by 1.6 percent each. Swatch also rose 1.4 percent after falling by more than 2 percent yesterday.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX