The Swiss Stock Market Pulled Back Following Nestle Downgrade

(RTTNews) - The Swiss stock market ended Tuesday's session in negative territory. Investor sentiment continued to be negatively impacted by concerns over the potential exit of Greece from the Eurozone. The weak performance of index heavyweight Nestle also weighed on the market, after the food giant received a downgrade.

The continued decline in the price of oil continued to impact global equity markets on Tuesday, as it dropped below $50 per barrel. The yield on the German 10-year bond also sank to a new low, as speculation for further quantitative easing measures at the next ECB meeting mounts.

The Swiss Market Index fell by 0.72 percent Tuesday and closed at 8,874.47. The Swiss Leader Index 0.69 percent and the Swiss Performance Index lost 0.67 percent.

Barclays downgraded its rating on shares of Nestle to "Equalweight" from "Overweight." The stock ended the session with a loss of 0.70 percent. Roche fell by 0.54 percent and Novartis decreased by 0.75 percent.

Shares of Swatch fell by 0.37 percent Tuesday, after Societe Generale reduced its price target on the watch-maker. Fellow luxury goods company Richemont dropped by 1.04 percent.

Zurich Insurance Group dipped by 0.16 percent, despite an upgrade from Berenberg. The broker raised its rating on the stock to "Buy" from "Hold." UBS climbed by 0.62 percent, Credit Suisse dropped by 1.72 percent.