The Swiss Stock Market Sank Below The 9,000 Point Level

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended Friday's session with a significant decline and sank beneath the 9,000 point level. The pullback in crude oil prices had a negative impact on investor sentiment, ahead of a closely-watched OPEC meeting.

The rest of the European markets were hit hard by the continued rise in value of the Euro against the U.S. dollar. The currency reached nearly a 23-month high against the dollar at the end of the trading week.

The Swiss Market Index decreased by 0.98 percent Friday and finished at 8,938.68. The SMI ended the trading week with an overall loss of 1.1 percent. The Swiss Leader Index dropped 0.95 percent Friday and the Swiss Performance Index lost 0.98 percent.

ABB dropped 3.0 percent, after falling nearly 3 percent during the previous session. Morgan Stanley downgraded its rating on the stock to "Equalweight" from "Overweight."

The bank stocks were under pressure at the end of the trading week. UBS weakened by 2.0 percent and Credit Suisse surrendered 1.8 percent. Julius Baer also finished lower by 1.5 percent.

The cyclicals also turned in a weak performance. SGS declined 1.8 percent, while Schindler and Dufry fell 1.7 percent each.

The index heavyweights all finished in negative territory Friday. Novartis decreased 1.2 percent and Roche lost 0.5 percent. Nestlé also closed down by 1.0 percent.

Swatch was among the biggest gainers of the session, with an increase of 1.9 percent. The stock initially dropped after it reported results for the first half of the year. However, the stock bounced back thanks to its optimistic outlook for the second half of the year.

Givaudan climbed 1.5 percent, after yesterday's pullback. Swiss Re gained 1.1 percent after Morgan Stanley rated the stock an "Overweight."