Athens News Agency: News in English, 00-05-19

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Foreign Exchange Rates-Monday

[02] Weather Forecast-Saturday

[03] ADEX-close

[04] ASE-weekly review

[05] Yalco-capital increase

[06] NATO exercise - Dynamic Mix (recasts)

[07] Elgeca SA-1st quarter results

[08] Public Power Corporation-new head

[09] Patriarch - Alexandroupoli - Visit

[01] Foreign Exchange Rates-Monday

Following are indicative rates for commercial banks released by the central bank for the next working day.

Mondays rates (buying)

Euro 334.006

U.S. dollar 374.172

[02] Weather Forecast-Saturday

Sunshine is forecast throughout the country on Saturday, turning cloudy on the mainland late in the afternoon and stormy in mountainous areas of the north.

[03] ADEX-close

Derivatives prices ended higher for one more session on the Athens Derivatives Exchange on Friday following gains in the two benchmark indices, FTSE/ASE 20 and FTSE/ASE 40.

Turnover was an improved 17 billion drachmas and volume 4,759 contracts.

A total of 1,659 futures contracts were traded on the FTSE/ASE 20 index, worth 8.4 billion drachmas. The May expiring contract ended at 2,632.50 points, the June at 2,590, the July at 2,592 and the September contract at 2,560 points.

A total of 3,100 contracts were traded on the FTSE/ASE 40 index, with a turnover of 8.6 billion drachmas. The May expiring contract ended at 720 points, the June at 687 and the July at 689.75 points.

[04] ASE-weekly review

The Athens Stock Exchange surprised even the most bullish analysts with its performance during the week under review, to end sharply up easily absorbing waves of profit-taking.

Dealers and analysts now believe that the Greek bourse has the dynamism to push higher despite a negative picture of international stock markets. Optimism over the course of the privatisation programme and positive company news were the main factors behind the renewed investors' confidence in the market.

The most impressive fact of the week was a sharp increase in turnover, evidence of rising inflows in the bourse.

Shares in the smaller and medium capitalisation sectors were the biggest percentage gainers in the week.

The general index ended the week 4.82 percent higher. The parallel market index for smaller capitalisation stocks soared 19.37 percent, while the Insurance and Leasing indices ended with losses.

Turnover totalled 1.254 trillion drachmas for a daily average of 250.986 billion, double the previous week's figure of 124.425 billion.

From a technial point of view, the 4,650 level was seen as a significant support level and the 4,850 level a short-term resistance level.

[05] Yalco-capital increase

A Yalco-S.D.Constantinou & Sons SA general shareholders' meeting approved on Friday a share capital increase plan, worth 4.7 billion drachmas through cash payment.

The plan envisages issuing of 5,587,620 new shares, of a nominal value of 200 drachmas and an offer price of 1,800 drachmas per share. A total of 2,562,000 shares will be offered to shareholders at a ratio of one for two and the remaining will be offered to the company's staff.

Yalco's turnover totalled 2.35 billion drachmas in the first quarter of 2000, up 35 percent from the same period last year, while profits rose to 140 million drachmas.

[06] NATO exercise - Dynamic Mix (recasts)

A major NATO exercise begins on Saturday in various parts of Greece, with the participation of 12 alliance member-states.

Some 15,000 troops, 65 vessels and more than 290 aircraft are set to participate in the exercise, code-named ?Dynamic Mix?, scheduled from between May 20 to 31.

According to reports, meanwhile, 12 Turkish F-16 fighter planes and three transport aircraft landed at a central Greece airbase Friday afternoon to take part in the exercise -- an unprecedented act emanating directly from the recent wholesale improvement in Greek-Turkish relations that would have been considered improbable even a year ago.

All 15 Turkish planes submitted flight plans with Greek authorities for their stop-over at the Aghialos base, reports state.

[07] Elgeca SA-1st quarter results

Elgeca SA, a listed distribution company, on Friday announced that its 1st quarter turnover totalled 8.9 billion drachmas, up 12 percent compared with the same period last year.

Pre-tax profits rose 9.0 percent to 611 million drachmas. The company expects its this year's turnover to total 30 billion drachmas.

Elgeca has expanded its activities in Romania through the purchase of a 80 percent equity stake in Romanian Cosmos Trading SRL through its subsidiary Elgeca Cyprus Ltd, earlier this year.

[08] Public Power Corporation-new head

Professor Dimitris Papoulias on Friday was appointed as new chairman at Public Power Corporation's board, an appointment coinciding with a government decision to transform the country's electricity utility to a multi-shareholding company.

Mr. Adrianos Papathanasiou will remain at his post as general manager until the appointment of a new chief executive at PPC. He will then move on to head an agency for the Management of Electric Power Transport and Distribution Systems, which will probably supervise the function of a liberalised energy market in Greece from February 19, 2001.

Pantelis Kapros, an Athens Polytechnic professor and a member of PPC's board, will take over as chairman of the Energy Regulatory Authority.

The new appointments were announced by Development Minister Nikos Christodoulakis after a cabinet meeting on Friday.

The Greek government plans the flotation of PPC in the Greek market later in the year.

[09] Patriarch - Alexandroupoli - Visit

Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos begins a visit to the northeast Greek border town of Alexandroupoli on Friday, following an invitation by local Metropolitan Anthimos.

Vartholomeos is scheduled to inaugurate sessions of a conference by the international union of police officers.

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