The Swiss Stock Market Finished Barely Changed

(RTTNews) - The Swiss Stock Market ended Wednesday's session near the flat line. Following a weak start, the market climbed to its intraday high well above 8,000 points in the afternoon. However, the market pared its gains in late trade and finished with a slight gain.

Investor sentiment received a boost from rising crude oil prices and hopes for further stimulus measures from the European Central Bank. However, investors began to turn more cautious as the day wore on and Thursday's ECB announcement draws closer.

The Swiss Market Index increased by 0.06 percent Wednesday and finished at 7,975.81. The Swiss Leader Index gained 0.20 percent and the Swiss Performance Index added 0.06 percent.

Shares of Adecco advanced 1.5 percent, following the release of its full year results. EBITA and net profit were in line with expectations. The company also announced an increase to its dividend.

LafargeHolcim was the top gainer of the session, with an increase of 2.4 percent. The stock had lost nearly 3.5 percent yesterday.

Among the big banks, UBS climbed 0.5 percent, but Credit Suisse fell 0.3 percent.

Swisscom was another notable gainer, with an increase of 1.2 percent. Schindler and SGS both finished up by 0.7 percent.

The weakest performing stocks Wednesday was Transocean, with a loss of 3.6 percent. The stock was down more than 7 percent on Tuesday.

Index heavyweight Roche finished lower by 1.0 percent, while Richemont and Swatch both declined by 0.8 percent each.