Greek banks rebound on Athens debt plans

Financial Times
October 12, 2011

Greek banks bounced back strongly on Wednesday after tumbling earlier in the week, as wider European equities were buoyed by an unexpected rise in eurozone industrial production.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 1.6 per cent to 977.02, its highest close in more than two months.

European Commission President José Manuel Barroso presented a plan to lower Greece’s debt burden, after European authorities said on Tuesday that they had agreed to release a further €8bn to Greece, likely to become available in early November.

National Bank of Greece , the country’s biggest lender, jumped 15 per cent to €1.84, while Alpha Bank and EFG Eurobank Ergasias surged 18.1 per cent to €0.98 and 21.3 per cent to €0.68 respectively, paring heavy losses incurred in the previous two sessions.

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