Stocks rebound in 2009 as Cyprus CSE ends with 45% gain

After a dismal 2008, world stock markets staged a spectacular rebound from their March lows, ending 2009 on a high note even though many economies remained in crisis and continued to need government assistance, but confidence has not been completely restored, which is why the outlook for 2010 is uncertain.
Cyprus stocks were among the big winners, rebounding strongly from their lows in March, closing the year with overall gains of 45% as the CSE General Index closed at 1597.23 points. The 2009 performance is significant considering that in 2008, the CSE ended with a 77.15% loss, according to Financial Mirror data.
Bank of Cyprus (BOCY), the island’s biggest lender and most widely held and traded title with the biggest influence on the market, ended 2009 with an 82.9% gain at EUR 4.92/share.
Marfin Popular Bank (CPB), the second most widely held and active stock on the market, ended the year up 18.65% at EUR 2.29/share, while Hellenic Bank (HB), the third most active stock ended 2009 up 15.38% at EUR 1.20/share.
Total CSE market capitalisation at the end of 2009 improved to EUR 7.32 bln from EUR 5.87 bln at the end of 2008, but is a far cry from the EUR 20.53 bln reached in 2007 at the height of the bull market when BOCY fetched 12.46 euros a share, CPB 9.12 euros and HB 4.60 euros.