Overcoming lackluster trading during the morning, Swiss stocks rallied in the final hours of Thursday's session to finish the day modestly higher. The advance, though mild, broke a recent losing streak that included a 1.2-percent decline the previous day.
Going into trading, sentiment remained negative, hurt by concerns about the Greek debt situation and about the state of the economy in the U.S. However, bargain hunting began to set in during the afternoon, after new data showed a decline in the U.S. trade deficit and amid interest-rate comments from ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet.
The ECB kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 1.25 percent. Meanwhile, Trichet signaled that a rate hike was likely in July, citing increased inflation risks.
The benchmark SMI fished higher by 0.23 percent, closing at 6,271.01. The SLI rose 0.45 percent to 976.87. The SPI advanced 0.25 percent to 5,773.29.
Financial stocks were mixed. UBS gained 0.7 percent, but CS saw a 0.4-percent retreat. This amid continued discussion about the rescheduling of debt payments in Greece.
Nestle slipped by 0.3 percent, weighed down by negative analyst comments. CS Research lowered its price target on the stock and Barclays downgraded its rating from Overweight to Equal Weight.
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May 08, 2026 15:50 ET Manufacturing and services sector survey results and labor market data from main economies were the highlight on the economics news front this week. Factory orders and jobs report dominated the news flow in the U.S. Similarly, industrial production data from German garnered attention in Europe. In Asia, purchasing managers’ survey results from China and the central bank decision from Australia were in focus.