The public sale of a 30-percent stake in Athens International Airport garnered strong demand, Greece's finance minister said Friday, in a sign of investor confidence in the country's recovering economy.

The IPO was oversubscribed twelvefold, raising 785 million euros ($855 million) following its launch on January 25, Finance Minister Kostis Hatzidakis said in a statement.

The shares are expected to begin trading on the Athens stock exchange on February 7.

"Through these initiatives, the groundwork is laid to attract even more investment and for dynamic growth," Hatzidakis said.

The sale bucked two straight years of dampened demand for IPOs globally.

According to financial data platform Dealogic, barely $121 billion was raised on stock markets worldwide, a further drop from $173 billion in 2022.

Greece's economy is steadily recovering after a near-decade debt crisis that officially ended in 2018.

US credit ratings agencies Fitch and S&P Global Ratings returned the Mediterranean country to investment grade last year.

Over 28 million travellers moved through Athens airport in 2023, a 24-percent increase over the previous year as tourism has rebounded following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Athens airport said the IPO's final offer price was set at 8.20 euros per share, at the top of the initially announced price range, implying a market capitalisation at listing of 2.46 billion euros.

Demand was in excess of 8.6 billion euros, the airport said.

Greece plans to raise 5.77 billion euros through privatisation in 2024.