The Swiss Stock Market Kicked Off 2017 With Gains As Banks Rise

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended the first trading session of the new year with a significant increase. The strong performance of the bank stocks helped to drive the market above the 8,300 point level.

Investor sentiment received a boost from some strong economic data at the start of the holiday shortened trading week. Chinese factory activity data pointed to stabilization in the world's second largest economy and growth in U.S. manufacturing activity accelerated by more than anticipated in December.

The Swiss Market Index increased 1.17 percent Tuesday and finished at 8,316.18. The Swiss Leader Index climbed 1.39 percent and the Swiss Performance Index added 1.06 percent.

Shares of Credit Suisse surged 6.4 percent Tuesday after Bank of America/Merrill Lynch added it to their "Top Pick" list. UBS climbed 4.7 percent and Julius Baer jumped 5.4 percent.

The insurance stocks also turned in a solid performance. Swiss Life increased 2.9 percent, Zurich Insurance advanced 2.0 percent and Swiss Re rose 1.1 percent.

Among the cyclicals, Adecco gained 1.4 percent and ABB added 1.2 percent. Shares of SGS rose 1.1 percent after it completed its share buyback program.

Actleion climbed 1.9 percent, while pharma heavyweights Roche and Novartis gained 1.5 percent and 1.3 percent. Shares of Nestlé ended the day with a loss of 0.5 percent.