Iseq down on euro zone debt fears

The Dublin market finished marginally lower this evening, as global markets retreated amid renewed concerns about the euro zone debt crisis.

While Eurogroup president Jean-Claude Juncker's comments that the IMF may not release its portion of an aid payment to Greece next month spooked markets, according to traders in Dublin, the sell-off had begun before then.

Following its AGM today, pharmaceutical company Elan advanced 2 per cent closing at €6.31, continuing the upwards momentum enjoyed by the stock following yesterday's announcement that it had acquired 24 per cent of a US drug discovery company.

Index-heavyweight CRH shed 1 per cent, closing at €14.85 following a broker downgrade by Citi.

Elsewhere, airline stocks continued to stabilise as the threat from the latest Icelandic ash-cloud appeared to recede. However, the Iseq's two airline stocks failed to replicate the gains enjoyed yesterday. Aer Lingus finished down 1.2 per cent at €0.81, and Ryanair shedding 0.3 per cent to €3.45, with brokers noting that Ryanair's cautious soundings about its 2011 performance at the publication of its annual results earlier this week dampened investor interest.

DCC was actively traded, following full-year results from UK waste-management company Shanks, a company with which DCC's environmental business has significant overlap. However DCC finished 2 per cent lower at €20.60.

On the bond markets, yields on 10-year Irish government bonds hit more than 11 per cent, as concerns about the euro zone debt crisis continued.