Swiss Market Ends Weak

(RTTNews) - The Switzerland market ended on a weak note on Thursday as stocks failed to hold early gains and drifted lower with investors taking some profits, cashing in recent gains.

The benchmark SMI, which advanced to 12,843.08 early on in the session, ended with a loss of 52.83 points or 0.41% at 12,740.91, the day's low.

VAT Group ended down 3.73%. Straumann Holding, ABB and Logitech International lost 2 to 2.25%.

Alcon, Kuehne + Nagel, Galderma Group, Richemont, Partners Group, Sika, Geberit, Swisscom and Sonova lost 1 to 1.9%.

Julius Baer and Swiss Life Holding gained about 1.7% and 1.6%, respectively. Swiss Re climbed 1.32%, and Novartis advanced nearly 1%.

In economic news, data from Swiss Federal Statistical Office showed Switzerland's producer and import prices dropped by 1.7% year-on-year in October, following a 1.8% decline in the previous month. This marked the 30th consecutive month of producer deflation.

On a monthly basis, producer and import prices fell by 0.3% in October, missing market forecasts of a 0.1% gain and slipping further from a 0.2% loss in the preceding period.