The PX-50 index closed sharply down on Friday, losing almost 2.2% of its value, to 421.6. The market had opened on a positive note, but a sell-off by both foreign and local accounts toward the end of the session led to the overall loss. Cesky Telecom, following the weakness of other telcos in eastern Europe, was down a massive 18% on the week. Most titles lost Friday: CEZ lost 2.3%, Philip Morris lost 2.8%, and Komercni banka shares lost 1.0%. Only Unipetrol bucked the trend and rose 1.4%. The overall volume on Friday was USD 21.5 mil.
(Milan Prochazka)