The Irish market joined in the European equity sell-off today which was sparked by a slew of disappointing earnings updates.

Bank of Ireland provided one of the few brights spots on an otherwise downbeat day. Brokers reported good interest in the stock as investors took comfort from the consortium of private investors named yesterday. The bank's share price rose about 8 per cent, less than one cent, to 10.9 cent.

"It's encouraging that the stock finished on its high of the day," a broker said, adding that the bank's ability to attract private investment is positive for the country in general. "Ireland is definitely the first... of the peripherals that people are looking to invest in," he said.

Ryanair shed 2.7 per cent, almost nine cent, to €3.19 as the airline sector weakened after Air France and Lufthansa missed earnings expectations.

CRH lost ground in early trade after fellow building materials group Lafarge reported disappointing second-quarter results that highlighted the difficulties in the US construction market, which accounts for 40 per cent of CRH's profits. The Dublin-headquartered cement giant recovered somewhat during the afternoon session, but still closed 11 cent off at €13.64.

European markets got a bounce in the afternoon when US markets opened and economic indicators including jobless numbers came in slightly better than expected. However this wasn't enough to lift the Iseq out of negative territory, and it closed almost 1 per cent off at 2,825.17.

National benchmark indexes fell in 13 of the western European markets. France's CAC 40 Index slid 0.6 per cent. The UK's FTSE 100 Index climbed 0.3 per cent, while Germany's DAX Index retreated 0.9 per cent.

Additional reporting - Bloomberg