The Swiss stock markets turned in a strong performance on Friday, climbing to its highest level since May of 2011. The market received a boost from yesterday's announcement from the U.S. Federal Reserve that it would proceed with a third round of quantitative easing.
In addition to embarking on a third round of quantitative easing, the Fed also extended its vow to keep interest rates at rock-bottom rates to mid-2015. Policy makers also decided to keep in place the Operation Twist program.
The Swiss Market Index climbed by 0.71 percent Friday and closed at 6,559.16. The SMI ended the trading week with an overall increase of 0.3 percent. The Swiss Leader Index rose by 1.47 percent Friday and the Swiss Performance Index gained 0.86 percent.
Financial stocks turned in a strong performance Friday. UBS climbed by 4.1 percent and Credit Suisse added 2.7 percent. Julius Baer also finished with a gain of 2.1 percent. Swiss Re and Baloise both rose by 1.7 percent and Zurich Insurance increased by 1.0 percent.
Cyclical stocks also finished in positive territory Friday. Clariant climbed by 4.5 percent and Adecco increased by 4.2 percent. Luxury goods stocks Richemont and Swatch were up by 4.4 percent and 3.1 percent respectively. Kuehne + Nagel rose by 3.6 percent, while added Holcim 3.3 percent. ABB gained 2.7 percent and Logitech finished higher by 3.3 percent.
by RTT Staff Writer
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