Irish stocks bounce back with 3.75% overall gains
The ISEQ had lost 10% of its value this year before trading began yesterday and most traders had expected another day of losses. But the Dublin market opened up in positive territory and made gains throughout the day following the Fed’s move to cut US interest rates by 0.75% to 3.5%.
The ISEQ added 234 points to close at 6,496.
Brokers said the strong performance by the ISEQ probably reflected the fact that it has been heavily sold in the past year.
Gains were made in most sectors with banks, building related shares and food companies all making strong gains.
The four main banks — AIB, Bank of Ireland, Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Life & Permanent — showed gains of between 2.2% and 6.5%.
Strong gains were made by companies linked to the construction sector, with CRH closing up 5.6%, Grafton Group added 7% and Kingspan gained 3.3%.
In the food and ingredients sector, IAWS added €1.15, or 9%, to €13.89; Kerry Group was up 4.5%; drinks maker C&C closed up nearly 8% and Greencore was up 4.3%.
Markets across Europe also recovered some ground yesterday.
The FTSE 100 closed up 161.9 points, or 2.9%, at 5,740.1 in a volatile session, having fallen as much as 4.3% earlier in the day. Volumes were at their highest level since October 2007. The FTSE 100 has lost 11% so far this year on concerns over the health of the US economy.
France’s CAC 40 closed up nearly 100 points at 4,842 but the German Dax was down 20 points at 6,769 making it the worst performing market yesterday.
German utilities E.ON and RWE weighed heaviest on the European benchmark index with declines of 4.2% and 5.5%, respectively. Deutsche Telekom fell 3.1%.
The euro was up 1.2% on the day at $1.4613 after briefly racing to $1.4643. The euro has rebounded from a one-month low against the dollar of around $1.4366.
* Additional reporting by Reuters
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
