The Swiss Stock Market Finished In The Green Wednesday

(RTTNews) - In contrast to the majority of the European markets, the Swiss stock market ended Wednesday's session in positive territory. The market got off to a weak start this morning, which was offset by the positive performance of the index heavyweights.

Investors were cautious ahead of the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's June meeting, which are scheduled to be published later in the day. The report may offer clues as to when the central bank may start tapering its bond-buying program. The unexpected decrease in U.S. wholesale inventories had little impact on the market.

The Swiss Market Index increased by 0.35 percent Wednesday and finished at 7,971.62. The Swiss Leader Index climbed by 0.19 percent and the Swiss Performance Index gained 0.28 percent.

The index heavyweights provided support to the overall market on Wednesday, especially the strong performance by Novartis, which rose by 1.1 percent. Roche climbed by 0.4 percent and Nestle added 0.2 percent.

Financial stocks were also among the gainers at mid-week. Julius Baer increased by 0.6 percent and Credit Suisse climbed by 0.3 percent. However, UBS fell by 0.4 percent. Swiss Life advanced by 1.7 percent and Swiss Re gained 0.6 percent. Baloise rose by 0.5 percent and Zurich added 0.4 percent.