The Swiss market closed well on Wednesday, carrying forward its recent success fueled by continued optimism about potential interest rate cuts by several central banks, including the Swiss National Bank. Investors continued to show positive reactions to some recent optimistic earnings updates.
The benchmark SMI ended with an increase of 89.24 points or 0.78%, closing at 11,602.21, the day's apex.
Sandoz Group saw a rise of around 4.25% after Deutsche Bank increased the stock price target from 26 francs to 28 francs. Moreover, Nestle saw a growth of 2.21%, Geberit advanced almost 2%, and ABB ended the day 1.84% up. Notably, ABB has agreed to form a new joint venture with the cable management systems provider, Niedax Group, to cater to the demand for cable tray products and services in North America.
SIG Group rose 1.44%, while Lonza Group, Kuehne & Nagel, Swiss Re, Schindler Ps, Straumann Holding, Zurich Insurance Group, Novartis and Sika showed growth ranging from 0.7 to 1.2%. Holcim and Swatch Group also concluded notably higher.
On the downside, Lindt & Spruengli decreased by 2.35%. UBS Group ended 1.7% down due to profit-taking after achieving strong gains in the previous session. Julius Baer also experienced a slight drop closing 1.02% down.