Swiss Market Ends Slightly Higher

(RTTNews) - The Switzerland market ended slightly up on Friday after a choppy session as investors largely refrained from making significant moves due to a lack of triggers.

The benchmark SMI once again moved in a very narrow range. The index closed up 10.96 points or 0.09% after moving between 12,142.92 and 12,197.76.

Sandoz Group climbed more than 2%. SIG Group gained 1.33%, and Swatch Group advanced nearly 1%.

ABB, VAT Group, Geberit, Julius Baer, Roche Holding, Novartis and Schindler PS gained 0.4 to 0.8%.

Holcim ended higher by nearly 0.5% on strong third-quarter results. The company said the US listing of its North American business is on track to complete by the first half of 2025. The company booked net sales of 7.12 billion francs in the quarter, down from 7.34 billion francs a year earlier.

SGS closed down 4.1% despite reporting an increase in sales. The company said its sales rose to 1.7 billion francs in the third quarter from 1.64 billion franc in the year-ago quarter. The group also confirmed its full-year 2024 targets, including mid- to high-single-digit organic growth.

Straumann Holding ended lower by 1.29% and Swiss Life Holding closed lower by 0.84%. Swiss Re, UBS Group, Sika, Zurich Insurance Group and Nestle closed modestly lower.