The Swiss stock market held on to a modest gain on Thursday, while the rest of the European markets sank into negative territory. The market received support from its defensive heavyweights, but finished well off its intraday high.
The European Central Bank on Thursday decided to retain its interest rate at a record low and the Bank of England also kept its policy unchanged. ECB President Mario Draghi pledged last Thursday that "Within our mandate, the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to defend the euro". At a press conference, Draghi assured that policy makers "will consider undertaking further non-standard measures" if conditions deteriorate.
The Swiss Market Index rose by 0.13 percent Thursday and finished at 6,407.30. The Swiss Leader Index declined by 0.47 and the Swiss Performance Index lost 0.07.
The positive performance by the Index's most heavily weighted stocks helped the SMI to hold on to some of its early gains. Novartis increased by 1.1 percent and Roche gained 0.6 percent. Shares of Nestle also finished higher by 0.7 percent.
Financial stocks were weak on Thursday. Credit Suisse dropped by 3.9 percent after Keefe, Bruyette & Wood's lowered their price target on the stock. UBS finished down by 1.5 percent and Julius Baer fell by 0.1 percent. Swiss Life decreased by 3.1 percent and Swiss Re lost 1.6 percent.
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