The Swiss Stock Market Dipped Friday, But Finished Higher For The Week

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended Friday's session with a modest decrease. The market declined Friday morning, but recovered some ground in the afternoon, after the release of the U.S. inflation data. The difference between the daily high and the daily low was only 60 points.

Despite today's slight pull back, the Swiss stock market finished the trading week with a strong gain. This was the third consecutive weeks of gains for the market, as it bounces back from the weakness of April.

The Swiss Market Index declined by 0.13 percent Friday and finished at 9,353.30. The SMI ended the overall trading week with a gain of 2.7 percent. The Swiss Leader Index slipped by 0.13 percent Friday and the Swiss Performance Index lost 0.12 percent.

Richemont fell by 1.0 percent, after the luxury group reported a sharp decline in fiscal 2015 profit. The company also hiked its dividend. Competitor Swatch Group sank by 3.1 percent.

Actelion declined by 1.0 percent Friday. The move was largely seen as profit taking. Actelion has been one of the best performing stocks so far this year. Swiss Life dropped by 0.8 percent, Aryzta lost 0.7 percent and ABB decreased by 0.6 percent.

Swiss Re gained 0.8 percent, after Citigroup upgraded its rating on the stock to "Buy" from "Neutral." Sika increased by 1.6 percent, Sonova gained 1.2 percent and Galenica added 1.2 percent.

Among the index heavyweights, Roche dropped by 0.5 percent. Novartis and Nestlé both managed gains of 0.1 percent each. Among financial stocks Credit Suisse advanced by 1.0 percent and Julius Baer rose by 0.1 percent. UBS finished with a loss of 0.2 percent.