A SURGE of buying - driven by Wall Street's third consecutive day of strong gains - pushed the Irish market into record territory, with over £320 million being added to its value.
The heavy demand for the leading financial and industrial shares saw the ISEQ Overall Index move above 2900 and close up over 38 points at a record 2921.67.
The gains were in line with rises on international markets, although Irish shares outperformed most of the major centres.
The key to the record breaking performance by Irish shares has been the strength of Wall Street, which rose by over 80 points on both Wednesday and Thursday and was trading another 40 points higher as the market closed yesterday. Later the Dow closed down 10.77 points at 6813.09.
The continued rally on Wall Street was sparked by a stronger Treasury bond market after the release of fourth quarter US Gross Domestic Product figures.
These were higher than forecasts but also indicated that inflation in the period was lower than had been thought.
American Treasury bonds rose sharply, providing the impetus for the rise in share prices.
In Dublin, the main focus was on the leaders. Bank of Ireland, in particular, saw huge demand, closing up 25p on 600p.
AIB was also firmer and both banks are only a few pence away from market capitalisation of £3 billion.
Other shares to rise strongly included CRH, Irish Permanent, Avonmore, Clondalkin, IAWS and Independents.
