The Swiss Stock Market Climbed On Strength Of Defensive Heavyweights

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended the first trading session of the new trading week solidly in positive territory. The market continues its recovery from the sharp drop in January, following the surprise SNB currency decision, and is approaching the 9,000 point level.

Greece secured a four month extension to its bailout agreement, which relieved investor anxiety. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen will begin two days of testimony before the House and Senate on Tuesday. Investors will be watching for clues regarding when the Fed plans to begin raising interest rates.

The Swiss Market Index climbed by 0.96 percent Monday and finished at 8,977.69. The Swiss Leader Index gained 0.71 percent and the Swiss Performance Index added 0.92 percent.

The strong performance of the index heavyweights provided a boost to the overall market Monday. Nestle led the way, with an increase of 1.7 percent. Novartis climbed by 1.3 percent and Roche gained 0.8 percent.

Shares of Holcim were in focus Monday. The stock rose by 1.1 percent, after its full year results met expectations. There was no further update regarding the company's planned merger with Lafarge.

Actelion advanced by 2.4 percent and Schindler gained 1.7 percent. Swatch climbed by 1.5 percent, Kuehne + Nagel rose by 1.2 percent and Geberit added 1.0 percent.

Financial stocks were largely positive at the start of the week. Julius Baer increased by 1.00 percent and UBS gained 0.4 percent. Credit Suisse finished with a loss of 0.2 percent. Swiss Re and Swiss Life both rose by 0.7 percent.

Shares of Transocean declined by 3.4 percent, as the price of oil dropped back below $50 a barrel. Sulzer dropped by 1.7 percent, after HSBC downgraded its rating on the stock to "Underweight" from "Neutral."