The Swiss Stock Market Dipped After Recent Run Up, Givaudan Strong

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended Friday's session with a slight decrease. The dip was attributed to profit taking, after seven straight days of gains. The market was range-bound throughout the session. The economic data released by the U.S. in the afternoon had little to no impact on trading.

The situation in Greece continues to progress. German lawmakers gave their approval to open talks for a new bailout for Greece. All signs are pointing to a gradual reopening of the Greek banks on Monday. Banks in the country have been closed since June 29.

The Swiss Market Index decreased by 0.14 percent Friday and finished at 9,446.17. The SMI ended the trading week with an overall gain of 3.4 percent. The Swiss Leader Index dipped by 0.03 percent Friday and the Swiss Performance Index fell by 0.09 percent.

Givaudan was the top performer of the session, with an increase of 4.0 percent. The Flavours and Fragrances manufacturer posted results for the first half of the year that topped expectations.

Swatch advanced by 1.9 percent Friday. The stock added to yesterday's gain of over 5 percent, following the release of its results for the first half of the year. Societe Generale also upgraded its rating on the watch maker to "Buy."

SGS ended the session with a gain of 0.8 percent, but had been much higher in early trade. The company's profit for the first half of the year decreased from a year ago. Looking ahead to fiscal 2015, SGS said it expects to deliver organic growth comparable to the first semester, with improved margins and solid cash flow generation.

Transocean was the biggest decliner at the end of the trading week. The stock got off to a weak start and came under further selling pressure after the open of the U.S. markets. Transocean dropped by 6.2 percent.

Credit Suisse fell by 1.6 percent, after it was downgraded to "Hold" from "Buy" by Deutsche Bank.