Croatian Benchmark Stock Index Drops Tracking Global Market Losses

"Bourses worldwide are falling and our market follows them," one fund manager told SeeNews.

The 28-share CROBEX measured 2,185.84 points by 1114 GMT, down 7.87% from 2,372.63 close on Thursday. It has lost 58.3% since the beginning of the year. This is the biggest crisis ever on the immature Zagreb stock market where in each of the previous two years, the CROBEX rose by more than 60%. Many retail investors have suffered losses due to the recent slide.  

"This is final plunge of the bourse," said web designer Neven Zubak, a 35-year old retail investor on the bourse, referring to Friday trading. Due to the fall in share prices, he and his wife had lost their savings of the last three years.

"I will not invest in shares anymore, but in the production of my own company, until the market turmoil calms down," he told SeeNews.