€12bn wiped off value of Irish shares

CLOSE to €12 billion has been wiped off the value of Irish shares in the past month as mounting bad debts, linked to the housing sector in the US, continues to destabilise the markets.

Concerns about the Irish housing market have meant the ISEQ has been harder hit than most. So far the ISEQ has lost more than 20%, or more than 20bn this year.

Continuing bad news out of the US saw the European markets lose further ground yesterday, with the ISEQ 100 down more than 2% by late afternoon, representing a one-day loss of €2bn-plus.