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Greece: economy, interest rate and stock market

The central bank's policy rate is 2.50% (up 0.50 points over 12 months). Inflation was 2.5% in 2025 and GDP grew 2.1% (World Bank). Athens General Composite is +24.6% over the past year.

Policy rate2.50%
Inflation · 20252.5%
GDP growth · 20252.1%
Unemployment · 20258.5%

Interest rate

2.50%   set by European Central Bank , the central bank all euro members share . Last change: +0.25 pt on 16 Sep 2026. Over 12 months: +0.50 pt. As of 13 Oct 2026.

Took effectRateChange
16 Sep 20262.50%+0.25 pt
17 Jun 20262.25%+0.25 pt
11 Jun 20252.00%−0.25 pt
23 Apr 20252.25%−0.25 pt
12 Mar 20252.50%−0.25 pt
5 Feb 20252.75%−0.25 pt
18 Dec 20243.00%−0.25 pt
23 Oct 20243.25%−0.25 pt
18 Sep 20243.50%start of our data

All countries: central bank interest rates. Rates move stocks through borrowing costs and the currency: rising rates usually weigh on rate-sensitive stocks and help banks, falling rates the opposite.

Stock market: Athens General Composite

Level1M3MYTD1Yvs 200-day avgFrom 52-week high
2,613.49−2.8%+4.5%+23.2%+24.6%+9.0%−4.8%

Closing level on 16 Oct 2026. "vs 200-day avg" is how far the index is above or below its own average of the last 200 closes; "from 52-week high" is the drop from its highest level of the past year. Both are arithmetic on our price history, not a forecast.

Risk-on or risk-off?

Risk-on   4 of 5 price checks on Athens General Composite are positive, as of 16 Oct 2026.

CheckReading todayPositive?
Index above its 200-day average+9.0% vs averageYes
50-day average above the 200-day average+10.6%Yes
3-month return positive+4.5%Yes
Within 10% of the 52-week high-4.6% from highYes
Volatility at or below its own 1-year median20-day 20% vs median 16% (annualised)No

4 or 5 positive = Risk-on, 2 or 3 = Mixed, 0 or 1 = Risk-off. Each check uses only prices up to that day, so the same rule can be run on history (below). It describes how investors are behaving in this market, not what happens next.

Context (not part of the score)

  • Global risk gauge (Market Compass): Risk-on, 1 of 7 warning signals on.
  • Breadth: 45% of Greece's stocks are above their own 200-day average.
  • Oil is up 29% in three months. Fuels are a large part of Greece's exports, so export earnings benefit.
  • The central bank has raised its rate by 0.50 points over twelve months. Tightening usually weighs on rate-sensitive stocks and helps bank margins.

How the rule would have done on the index, 2000-10-16 to 2026-10-16 (25.6 years)

StrategyReturn a yearWorst fallVolatilityTime investedSwitches
Buy and hold the index−1.4%−91.7%27.6%100%–
Hold only when not Risk-off (2+ checks)8.1%−50.6%16.4%61.3%161
Hold only when Risk-on (4+ checks)7.5%−23.7%12.6%44.9%177

The position is decided at one day's close and applied to the next day's return, so the rule never uses the future. Time out of the market earns nothing here. Limits: index price only (no dividends, no interest on cash), no trading costs or taxes, one market and one period, and a rule that did well or badly in the past can do the opposite next time. Hypothetical results, not a promise and not advice.

Stocks that fit the current setting

Risk-on setting: the screen looks for the strongest price momentum over the last six months (skipping the latest month) among stocks trading above their 200-day average. Chosen from the 140 most traded stocks in Greece, using prices up to 16 Oct 2026.

StockPrice3M6M momentumVolatility
SPIR The House of Agriculture Spi...EUR 0.33−15.5%+165.2%104%
ELPE Hellenic Petroleum S.AEUR 19.64+61.0%+91.6%29%
MOH Motor Oil (Hellas) Corinth R...EUR 68.95+42.2%+91.0%32%
SIDMA Sidma S.A. Steel ProductsEUR 2.32+4.0%+60.5%50%
REALCONS Real Consulting IT Business...EUR 8.54+20.6%+60.2%29%
OPTIMA Optima bank SAEUR 13.65+33.2%+58.5%36%
ADMIE Admie Holding S.AEUR 4.52+3.4%+51.9%30%
KRI Kri-Kri Milk Industry S.AEUR 33.30+18.9%+51.3%33%
MIN J. & B. Ladenis Bros S.A. -...EUR 0.74+8.9%+48.3%35%
TPEIR Piraeus Financial Holdings S...EUR 9.78+8.4%+46.7%38%

These are candidates to research, not recommendations. The screen reads prices only: it knows nothing about the companies' earnings, debt or valuation, and a stock can fit the setting and still fall. Momentum screens tend to pick volatile stocks, so check the Volatility column. We cannot yet test this screen fairly on the past, because our price history only contains companies that are listed today, which flatters any screen. So instead of showing a backtest we record each day's picks and will judge the rule on what happens after the fact. Educational only, not financial advice.

Economy at a glance

MeasureLatestYear
Economy size (GDP)$280.6 billion2025
GDP per person$26,9482025
GDP growth2.1%2025
Inflation (consumer prices)2.5%2025
Unemployment8.5%2025
Population10.4 million2025
Current account balance, % of GDP-5.6%2025
Exports of goods and services, % of GDP39.5%2025
Imports of goods and services, % of GDP44.0%2025

GDP growth by year (blue growth, red contraction)

−10−5051020142016201920222024

Inflation by year

−303691220142016201920222024

Unemployment by year

0714212820142016201920222024

Source: World Bank World Development Indicators, annual figures. The latest year is usually the previous calendar year, so these numbers are not live and are revised later by the World Bank. The Euro area page shows the combined figures; this page shows Greece alone.

Trade structure

Share of merchandise exports and imports by product group. ■ exports   ■ imports.

Fuels
26.5%
20.4%
Food
24.1%
14.9%
Agricultural raw materials
1.1%
0.8%
Ores and metals
9.5%
4.5%
Manufactured goods
38.5%
58.6%

High-technology products are 15.0% of manufactured exports (2024).

What the trade mix suggests to watch

  • Fuels are 26.5% of Greece's merchandise exports (and 20.4% of imports), so energy prices matter for what the country earns abroad.
  • Food is 24.1% of merchandise exports: crop and food prices, and the weather behind them, matter for export income.
  • Exports plus imports equal 83% of GDP, so the economy is moderately open to trade.
  • The current account was a deficit of 5.6% of GDP (2025): the country spends more abroad than it earns and relies on foreign capital to fill the gap.

These describe the structure of trade, using the figures above. They are not forecasts and not investment advice. Latest available year differs by group (usually 2024 or 2025).

More on Greece

Sources: Bank for International Settlements and central bank decisions (policy rates), World Bank (economy and trade), StocksXray price history (index). Educational only, not financial advice.