The Swiss Stock Market Finished Little Changed

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended Wednesday's session with a slight dip, but was little changed overall. After a weak start, the market climbed into positive territory and remainder there for most of the session. However, the market pared its gains in late trading, following the weak opening on Wall Street.

Investors appear hesitant to make any major moves ahead of Friday's speech from Fed Chair Janet Yellen. Traders are hoping for some clue as to when the central bank will increase interest rates. Falling crude oil prices also had a negative impact on investor sentiment today, after the rise in U.S. crude inventories.

The Swiss Market Index decreased 0.02 percent Wednesday and finished at 8,199.83. The Swiss Leader Index climbed 0.17 percent, but the Swiss Performance Index slipped 0.03 percent.

The biggest decliner Wednesday was Swatch. The watch maker dropped 1.9 percent after Societe Generale downgraded its rating on the stock to "Sell." Shares of rival Richemont also weakened by 0.4 percent.

The index heavyweights all finished in the red. Novartis decreased 0.2 percent and Roche fell 0.5 percent. Shares of Nestle also dipped 0.2 percent after Fitch Ratings lowered its credit rating to 'AA' from 'AA +'.

The bank stocks were among the best performers Wednesday. UBS increased 2.9 percent and Credit Suisse advanced 1.4 percent. Shares of Julius Baer also closed higher by 0.8 percent.

Kuehne + Nagel climbed 0.6 percent and Geberit rose 0.5 percent. Royal Bank of Canada confirmed its "Outperform" rating on Geberit and raised its price target. Syngenta also added 0.3 percent.

In the broad market, Zurich Airport jumped 3.2 percent after reporting better than expected half year results.