June 6 (SeeNews) - The Bulgarian Stock Exchange BGREIT index, which tracks real estate investment trusts, closed a third consecutive trading session at an all-time high value.
The BGREIT advanced 0.20% to 122.73 points on Thursday, exceeding its Wednesday and Tuesday highs of 122.49 points and 122.23 points, respectively.
The index was backed by a 2.12% rise in the share price of its largest member by market capitalisation - Advance Terrafund REIT [BUL:6A6], which offset a 0.99% drop in Bulgarian Real Estate Fund REIT (BREF) [BUL:5BU] shares.
The blue-chip SOFIX index closed Thursday's trading session 0.39% higher at 579.90 points, as First Investment Bank (Fibank) [BUL:5F4] shares bounced back.
Fibank shares gained 6.25% to 3.40 levs on Thursday, erasing its 3.61% drop in the preceding trading session.
On Tuesday, Moody's Investors Service said that it has downgraded Fibank's long-term deposit rating to B2 from B1, maintaining the stable outlook.
"Today's rating action reflects Moody's view that the bank's high level of problem loans and significant repossessed assets, predominantly foreclosed properties, continue to pose a risk to the bank's capital base," Moody's said in a statement.
Fibank also led gainers among the wider BGBX40 index and the equally-weighted BGTR30 index.
The BGBX40, which tracks the 40 most traded shares on the stock exchange in Sofia, added 0.23% to 115.41 points, while the BGTR30 index, in which companies with a free float of at least 10% have equal weight, edged up 0.04% to 502.30 points.
Total regulated market turnover rose to 331,000 levs ($191,000/169,000 euro) on Thursday from 118,000 levs on Wednesday.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)
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