ISEQ closes in positive territory but Elan tumbles

The ISEQ index got over its early morning jitters today to close the day at 5,315.29, up 1.28, although Elan shares slipped more than 4.5%.

It was a good day for most of the banks today. Bank of Ireland enjoyed a strong day's trading, climbing 17c to €10.68, while AIB rose 7c to €12.32.

Irish Life and Permanent was up slightly to €12.70 although Anglo-Irish Bank slipped 2c to €13.30.

Meanwhile CRH closed the day just in negative territory, slipping 5c to 17.50.

Yesterday saw brick delivery stats from the UK's Department of Trade and Industry show volumes down 10% despite production being up 2.3% year on year. CRH owns Ibstock, Britain's number one brick manufacturer with around 32% market share.

Meanwhile pharmaceutical giant Elan announced it will exit from its joint venture with ISIS Pharmaceuticals which means it will no longer receive royalties on the Orasense or Hepasense joint venture.

This had a negative effect on shares, which ended the day down 88c to €18.12.