Iseq Index logs losses in contrast to European peers

While consumers splashed out on Black Friday deals, it was a muted day of trading for global investors, as the US market reopened after its closure for Thanksgiving on Thursday.

In Dublin, the ISEQ All Share Index was down by day end, in contrast to peers across Europe that saw gains by market close.

Dublin

The Iseq All Share Index fell 0.21 per cent on Friday, to close at 8,265.84.

Among the banks, Bank of Ireland fell by 0.65 per cent to €8.82, while shares in Permanent TSB lost 1.73 per cent to close at €1.70. Meanwhile, AIB was little changed at €4.23.

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Ireland’s two listed home builders were down on the day. Cairn Homes lost 1.74 per cent to close at €1.25, while Glenveagh Properties closed at €1.03, after falling by 0.58 per cent.

Paddy Power’s parent company Flutter Entertainment lost 1.46 per cent, to close at €144.65. Also seeing losses on the day, nutrition company Glanbia was down 1.34 per cent to €15.43.

On the upside, food company Kerry Group gained 0.51 per cent to close at €74.48, while building materials company Kingspan rose by 0.9 per cent to €69.86, and packaging company Smurfit Kappa rose by 1.31 per cent to €31.71.

Budget airline Ryanair held steady on Friday, to close at €17.33.

London

The UK’s export-heavy FTSE 100 Index gained 0.06 per cent on Friday, to close at 7,488.20. Meanwhile, the FTSE Mid-Cap 250 Index lost 0.12 per cent and closed at 18,458.10.

Among individual stocks, Barclays climbed 1.21 per cent as it was reported that the UK bank is working on plans to make savings of up to £1 billion (€1.15 billion), which could involve cutting as many as 2,000 jobs.

Software company Sage Group saw shares fall by 2.34 per cent, reversing gains earlier in the week. The company, which provides payroll and accounting software for businesses, saw shares rise by 12 per cent and hit a record high earlier this week, after strong results.

Life insurer Legal and General saw shares rise by 0.61 per cent, after news broke that it had agreed to a £4.8 billion pound (€5.53 billion) full buy-in of the Boots Pension Scheme, in what it said was the largest such transaction in Britain by premium size.

Europe

European markets closed slightly up on Friday, after European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said that the ECB is at a point where it can pause its cycle of tightening monetary policy to assess the impact.

The pan-European STOXX 600 Index gained 0.31 per cent, to close at 459.90. Meanwhile, the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.2 per cent to close at 7,292.80, and the German DAX Index was up 0.22 per cent, reaching 16,029.49 by close of day.

Lagarde said on Friday that policymakers can now “observe very attentively” as they judge how long to keep borrowing costs high, and decide whether the next move is “up or down.”

Among individual stocks, Forvia gained 2.50 per cent and Continental was up 2.31 per cent, after Barclays upgraded each of the car parts makers to “overweight”.

French supermarket chain Casino Guichard lost 7.79 per cent, as the debt-laden retailer warned on Wednesday of likely 2023 losses for its core French business, due to a slower-than-expected turnaround at its hypermarkets business and the impact of investment costs.

New York

Shares on Wall Street were mixed on Friday, as traders returned to a muted trading session following the US Thanksgiving holiday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index and the S&P 500 Index were up by Friday evening Irish time, while the NASDAQ Index was down.

Investors were buoyed by minutes from the latest Fed policy meeting, which signalled there would not be more hikes unless progress against taming inflation faltered.

Among single stocks, Nvidia fell after Reuters reported the chipmaker told customers in China it was delaying the launch of a new artificial intelligence chip to comply with U.S. export rules until the first quarter of next year.

Shares in iRobot soared following a report that Amazon is set to win unconditional EU antitrust approval for its $1.4 billion (€1.28 billion) acquisition of the robot vacuum maker.

Additional reporting from Reuters and Bloomberg