Sharp gains follow mixed trading

The Iseq Index saw sharp gains following a few days of fairly mixed results across world markets.

The Irish Exchange jumped 50.9 points to 3529.9.

In the financial sector Bank of Ireland was unchanged at 13.7c. The bank has indicated that it is to close nine branches across its Northern Ireland network, leaving it with 35. AIB dipped by 0.2c to 9.1c, while Permanent TSB Group Holdings dropped 0.9c to 4.1c. Irish insurer FBD Holdings rose by 15c to €10.80.

Construction stocks were mainly stronger overall, with sector leader CRH climbing 71c to €15.86, and Grafton Group gaining 7c to €4.37. Kingpsan bucked the trend falling 9.1c to €8.73 on the day.

Elsewhere, CPL Resources reported Net Free Income (NFI) of €23.71m, an increase of 14% year on year, with earnings per share of 16.9c. The stock climbed 13c to €4.35 as a result. Meanwhile, low-cost carrier Ryanair firmed 16.2c to €5.421.