The Swiss Stock Market Fell Again & Dropped Nearly 6% For The Week

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended Friday's session with another significant decline. The market got off to a weak start this morning, but the situation began to improve around midday. However, the market dropped further in the afternoon, following the weak performance of the U.S. equity markets.

Investor concerns over a possible hard landing in China and the impact that it could have on the global economy weighed on the market. The Shanghai Composite Index plunged by 4.3 percent Friday and Chinese manufacturing data came in weaker than expected.

The Swiss Market Index sank by 3.36 percent Friday and finished at 8,798.57. The SMI ended the trading week with an overall loss of 5.9 percent, which was the biggest drop since the SNB decision back in January. The Swiss Leader Index dropped by 3.11 percent and the Swiss Performance Index lost 3.15 percent.

The index heavyweights all finished sharply lower at the end of the trading week. Novartis tumbled by 4.2 percent, after the company agreed to acquire the rights to ofatumumab from GlaxoSmithKline. Roche sank by 3.4 percent and Nestlé fell by 3.2 percent.

Financial stocks were also under pressure Friday. Julius Baer dropped by 5.3 percent and UBS lost 3.7 percent. Credit Suisse decreased by 3.4 percent.

LafargeHolcim was another notable decliner, with a loss of 4.3 percent. Transocean dropped by 4.0 percent, after crude oil prices slipped back near 5-year lows.

Swatch declined by 2.4 percent and Richemont lost 2.1 percent, as concerns over China continued to weaken the luxury goods companies.

Adecco fell by 2.5 percent. The company announced that it has named Hans Ploos van Amstel as its new CFO. ABB decreased by 2.4 percent, despite an upgrade at HSBC to "Buy."