Market gains on quiet day

THE Irish Stock Exchange closed in positive territory yesterday ending up 32 points better off at 6,424.

AIB added 11c to €13.71 despite saying in an interim management statement it expects a 6% decline in earnings per share in the first half of 2008. Bank of Ireland dropped 2c to €8.74. Irish Life and Permanent and Anglo finished 15c and 10c stronger at €11.29 and €9.50.

Smurfit Kappa finished 20c lower at €7.70 after selling a minority shareholding in Duropack to reduce its net debt. Pharmaceutical company Elan was 5c behind at €17.70 while its Alzheimer’s disease partner in Toronto, Transition Therapeutics, reported a steady set of figures.