The Athens Stock Exchange is trying to create a first "safety cushion" from the 1,400 support levels today (18/6), with buyers putting a brake on the 3-day downward streak.

The short-term improvement in sentiment abroad is helping the Greek market to recover towards 1,420 points, while traders are looking to take advantage of attractive valuations.

On the other hand, of course, we must not forget that investor visibility remains low, which cannot be ruled out until the first Sunday in July, when the second round of the French elections will be held.

More specifically, during today's session, the General Index has recorded a significant increase of 0.99% to 1,417.94 points, gaining almost 14 points compared to Monday's close (1,404.11 points).

The arc of daily fluctuations extends to 11 points (from 1,407.20 to 1,418.40 points), with a turnover of 40 million euros, of which 4 million euros are pre-agreed packages.

The banking index is looking for a first reaction to its three-session losing streak, and is currently up +1.23% to 1,243 points.

National Bank shares climb +1.96% and 8.00 euros, Piraeus shares expand +1.14% and 3.556 euros, Alpha Bank shares trade +1.12% and 1.541 euros, while Eurobank shares are up +0.25% and 2.039 euros.

In the high-cap index (+0.86% and 3,435 points), Hellaktor's shares soar +5.7% and 2.48 euros ahead of the 0.5 euro capital return, the cut-off of which is scheduled for July 22. At the same time, PPC, Motor Oil and Aegean shares gain more than 2%, while Autohellas, Helleniq Energy and Jumbo follow with more than +1%.

As for the mid-cap index (+0.60% and 2,265 points), ADMIE shares make a mini-rally of +3.3% and 2.19 euros, thanks to satisfactory quarterly results. Techniki Olympiaki, Kri-Kri, Intracom, AVAX, and Profile gain between 1% and 2%. On the flip side, Austriacard's shares lose 2.2% and retrace 5.7 euros.