Good mood on bond-buying lingers

Irish shares continued their upward momentum as markets reacted favourably to Mario Draghi’s announcement on Thursday regarding the purchase of sovereign bonds to assist ailing eurozone countries. The Iseq Index jumped 35 points to 3261.9.

In the financial sector, both AIB and Bank of Ireland saw gains, with the former adding 0.1c to 5.1c and the latter increasing by 0.4c to 5.1c. Permanent TSB was unchanged at 2.5c. Meanwhile, insurer FBD Holdings jumped 20c to €9.20.

In construction, CRH was 36c higher at €14.80, Kingspan climbed 18.6c to €8.20, and Grafton Group was ahead by 2.5c to €3.35.