The Swiss Stock Market Finished With A Modest Gain Monday

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended the first session of the new trading week with a modest increase. The market got off to a weak start, but managed to turn positive before midday. The positive performance of the U.S. markets provided further support in the afternoon.

The trading session was relatively quiet ahead of the Christmas holiday. Investors were encouraged by the release of the better than expected U.S. consumer sentiment data in the afternoon. The data added to a recent string of strong U.S. data, giving investors further confidence in the recovery of the world's largest economy.

The Swiss Market Index increased by 0.32 percent Monday and finished at 8,107.10. The Swiss Leader Index climbed by 0.50 percent and the Swiss Performance Index added 0.36 percent.

Actelion advanced by 1.4 percent Monday. The company received European Commission approval for Tracleer successor Opsumit on Friday, after the market close. Clariant increased by 1.3 percent and ABB gained 1.2 percent. Adecco rose by 1.2 percent and Sika added 1.1 percent.

The index heavyweights were little changed Monday. Roche climbed by 0.2 percent and Nestle added 0.1 percent. Novartis finished lower by 0.1 percent.

Schmolz + Bickenbach sank by 6.1 percent. The steelmaker announced that John Nonn will resign at the end of the year. Orell Füssli also dropped by 2.2 percent, after it issued a profit warning.