Market ends in negative territory

SHARES in Ireland nudged lower with sales in the banking stocks weighing on the index. The ISEQ shed 2.67 points to 7993.34 at the closing bell.

The financial sector gave up 51.19 points overall with AIB 27c lower at €19.26 while Bank of Ireland eased 3c to €15.12. In contrast, Anglo Irish rose 3c to €13.23 while Irish Life and Permanent firmed 25c to €20.30.

In construction, CRH charged ahead, up 48c to €29.18 on back of US peer company reporting strong results indicating that US operations continue to face positive markets. Grafton Group advanced 13c to €10.60 while Kingspan Group added 10c to €12.80.