Shares surged globally on Thursday as investors largely shrugged off US President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats.
Market volatility has dropped to its lowest levels this year in recent days after the White House pushed back the deadline for the implementation of the duties to August, somewhat allaying concerns about a spiralling trade war.
Dublin
Pulled in opposite directions by the larger caps, the Iseq index was unchanged at the closing bell in Dublin.
Irish banking stocks lost ground after Wednesday’s rally, with AIB and Bank of Ireland shedding 1.4 per cent and 0.8 per cent respectively to close at €6.92 per share and €12.40.
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Ryanair, meanwhile, bucked a wider sectoral trend, dipping by almost 0.3 per cent to €24.28 per share.
Irish listed home builders continued to gain momentum following news on Wednesday that the Government is looking at reducing the minimum apartment size in an effort to reduce the cost of construction.
Cairn Homes added almost 3.3 per cent to close at €2.21 per share, and Glenveagh jumped by 1.1 per cent to €1.84.
Meanwhile, the London-listed shares of Dublin-headquartered DCC advanced by 0.5 per cent after it issued a positive trading statement in advance of its AGM in Dublin
Also in London, shares in Hostelworld plunged by 8.8 per cent after saying its net bookings and revenues were flat in the first six months of the year.
London
UK shares rallied with the FTSE 100, up 1.3 per cent, touching record highs, while the domestic-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 was up 0.5 per cent.
Stocks rose in London amid a global rally, as traders grew confident that Mr Trump would either reach agreements with US trading partners or again delay or dial back his threatened tariffs.
Mining stocks led the FTSE 100 risers, with Anglo American up more than 5 per cent, closely followed by Glencore and Rio Tinto.
Air Lingus owner IAG jumped 1.8 per cent. Other airline stocks like Wizz Air and EasyJet were in red at the end the close of the session.
Defence shares trended lower with Rolls-Royce dipping by 0.8 per cent while British aerospace and engineering group Babcock plunged by 1.8 per cent. The company’s share price has doubled so far this year amid expectations of a surge in British and European defence spending.
Europe
Europe’s main indices were mixed with the blue-chip Stoxx 50 largely unchanged and the pan-European Stoxx 600 ahead by 0.5 per cent, largely driven by the performance of its UK components.
Germany’s DAX index also hit a record high on Thursday.
BMW surged by more than 4 per cent to the top of the blue-chip index after the auto giant reported a 10 per cent surge in European sales during its second quarter.
Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz also moved higher, adding around 1.8 per cent each.
German stocks have performed well in the first half of the year, buoyed by chancellor Friedrich Merz’s plans to boost public spending to jump-start Europe’s largest economy.
French stocks also saw gains on Thursday, with Jameson owner Pernod Ricard climbing by almost 3.3 per cent. Luxury giants Kering and LVMH also advanced, adding around 3 per cent each during the session.
New York
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq nudged lower on Thursday, as investors monitored developments around Mr Trump’s trade policies, while airline stocks jumped following Delta’s upbeat forecast.
Delta Air Lines jumped 12.9 per cent after forecasting third-quarter and full-year profits above Wall Street estimates.
Peers United Airlines rose 9.7 per cent, while American Airlines gained 9 per cent, boosting the Dow Jones Transport Average by 2.3 per cent.
Technology and communications stocks were laggards with Nvidia shares treading water after Wednesday’s surge following its $4 trillion valuation. – Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters
