ISEQ stays in black

The ISEQ index of Irish shares lost some ground in afternoon trading after this morning's 25c rise, but still finished in the black.

The index closed up 4.4 points at 6721.92.

There were gains across the board in financial stocks - Bank of Ireland was up 14c to €13.01 while AIB was rose 2c to €17.57. Anglo Irish Bank was up 9c to €11.17 and Irish Life and Permanent was up 15c to €15.15.

Ryanair fell 2c to €6.73. The airline announced two new routes today linking Derry with Britain.

Tullow Oil rose 1c to €3.34 after the group announced record results for the first six months of this year. Operating profit before exploration activities increased to £82.5m (€122m), up 318%.

Meanwhile, a downturn in profits at bathroom products company Qualceram was greeted with a 6c fall to €1.19.