Indices: From European shores to American ones

The smaller European markets have started the year well. Greece dominates, building on the success of 2024. The Netherlands and Denmark did not disappoint, as each is home to a star of the European stock market: ASML for the former and Novo Nordisk for the latter. We conclude with a trip to the United States, where the return to favor of mid-caps will have to wait.

Athens, the Hellenic beauty

The Greek market enjoyed a remarkable 7.5% rise since the start of 2024. This momentum is mainly attributable to the financial sector (National Bank of Greece, Eurobank Ergasias, Piraeus, Financial Holdings, Alpha Services and Holdings, etc.), whose components recorded growth of 16.1%. Athens confirmed its revival after a high-quality 2023 vintage (+39% for the Greece ATHEX Composite), with the return of IPOs: Athens Airport enriched the stock market this very day, offering 30% of its capital to investors.

All sectors are flashing green in Greece

Amsterdam keeps pace

Continuing our overview, the Dutch AEX index also stands out, up 5.6% since the start of the year, buoyed by its technology sector (ASML, Prosus, ASM International, RELX, BE Semiconductor, etc.) and, more specifically, by the remarkable performance of ASML. The semiconductor giant saw its shares jump 23.2%. It now accounts for 18.9% of the AEX.

Novo continues to boost Copenhagen

Third place went to the OMX Nordic 40 , up 3.5%. However, a closer look at the Nordic countries shows that Denmark stands out with growth of 2.7%, largely driven by Novo Nordisk. The pharmaceutical company, whose performance reached 15%, exerts a significant influence on the index, representing 15.2% of its total weight. The other Nordic countries - Sweden, Norway and Finland- posted negative performances.

Not yet time for midcaps

To conclude this international overview, a detour to the USA reveals that the Russell Top 50 Mega Cap, which includes giants such as Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, Amazon, Meta, Alphabet, Berkshire Hathaway, Eli Lilly, Tesla,...., outperformed the Nasdaq 100 , claiming the best performance of 2024 with a 6.3% rise. The most technology-heavy indices followed suit, but the Russell 2000 struggled to keep up, posting a 3.6% decline. The revenge of mid-caps is struggling to materialize.

The Russell Top 50 Mega Cap includes, as its name suggests, the 50 most valuable companies in the Russell 3000. Although there are only 50 components, this index represents almost 40% of the total market capitalization of the US market.