CRH falls on fears of US bidding war

CRH is still tipped to win out in its plans to acquire US cement giant Ash Grove but will likely have to pay more than the $3.5bn (€2.98bn) it had planned for it to fend off an 11th-hour from a US rival.

Shares in CRH fell by as much as 2% at one stage after acquisition target Ash Grove said it had received an offer, valuing it at between $3.7bn and $3.8bn, from an unnamed company, later identified as Summit Materials.

It said it would take about two weeks to consider the new terms.