BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The Switzerland stock market ended weak on Wednesday after a choppy session, as investors largely refrained from making significant moves due to worries about the coronavirus spread and its likely impact on the economy.
The benchmark SMI, which advanced to 10,266.97 after a weak start, faltered soon thereafter, and despite rebounding into positive territory around mid-afternoon, ended the session lower due to a mild-sell in the closing minutes.
The index settled at 10,187.00, posting a loss of 42.30 points or 0.41%. On Tuesday, the index ended with a loss of 79.37 points or 0.77% at 10,229.30.
Roche Holding ended down 1.6%. Alcon, Novartis, Swisscom and ABB lost 0.6 to 0.75%.
Credit Suisse and UBS Group gained 1.9% and 1.8%, respectively. Geberit, LafargeHolcim, Swiss Life Holding and Swatch Group moved up 0.4 to 0.9%.
Sika ended nearly 1% up after the company said that it expects more favorable market conditions for the second half of the year.
Among the stocks in the Swiss Mid Price index, Temenos Group, Schindler Ps, Ems Chemie Holding and Kuehne & Nagel declined 1 to 1.3%.
AMS gained more than 3%. Straumann Holding, Julius Baer and Helvetia ended stronger by 2.2 to 2.7%. Logitech, Cembra Money Bank and Swiss Prime Site also closed notably higher.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX