Helsinki - Finnish shares ended the trading day higher on Friday, as sector strength in Telecoms, Consumer Services and Technology helped lift the benchmark index to a record closing level.
The OMX Helsinki 25 rose 0.93% at the close, registering a new all-time high for the index.
Among the index constituents, Nokia Oyj recorded the largest gain, climbing 4.62% or 0.29 points to finish at 6.52. Steelmaker Outokumpu Oyj added 3.34% or 0.19 points to close at 5.72, and software and services group TietoEVRY Corp advanced 2.49% or 0.46 points to end the session at 18.93.
On the downside, Qt Group Oyj was the weakest performer on the index, slipping 1.88% or 0.42 points to close at 21.98. Tyre maker Nokian Renkaat Oyj declined 1.39% or 0.15 points to finish at 10.68, while Nordea Bank Abp lost 1.14% or 0.19 points to close at 16.43.
Market breadth on the Helsinki exchange favoured advancing issues: 106 stocks rose versus 65 that fell, and 16 remained unchanged.
There were notable company-level milestones during the session. Shares of Qt Group fell to 5-year lows, with the stock down 1.88% or 0.42 to 21.98. Conversely, Outokumpu shares reached 52-week highs, gaining 3.34% or 0.19 to close at 5.72.
Commodity and currency markets moved alongside equities. Brent crude for May delivery rose 2.08% or 1.47 to trade at $72.31 a barrel. North American crude for April delivery increased 2.05% or 1.34 to $66.55 a barrel. The April gold futures contract advanced 1.02% or 52.94 to trade at $5,247.14 a troy ounce.
On the foreign exchange front, EUR/USD was unchanged 0.20% at 1.18, while EUR/GBP was unchanged 0.43% at 0.88. The US Dollar Index Futures moved lower by 0.17% to 97.57.
Summary of session activity:
- OMX Helsinki 25 closed higher by 0.93%, setting a new record closing level.
- Top performers included Nokia (+4.62%), Outokumpu (+3.34%), and TietoEVRY (+2.49%).
- Weakest names included Qt Group (-1.88%), Nokian Renkaat (-1.39%) and Nordea (-1.14%).
The movement in major commodities and currencies was notable alongside the equity gains, with both Brent and US crude posting gains, and gold futures also higher. Currency pairs including EUR/USD and EUR/GBP were effectively unchanged within the small moves reported, while the dollar index slipped modestly.
Trading breadth indicated more stocks advanced than declined on the Helsinki exchange, and individual stock extremes included a 5-year low for Qt Group shares and a 52-week high for Outokumpu.
These session outcomes reflect the specific price and percentage moves recorded at the close and the market-state details reported for the day.