Dublin Report: There was only one story in the Irish market yesterday and it was DCC.

The company, whose businesses range from food to fuel and computers to healthcare,impressed the markets with a better-than-expected 20 per cent increase in first-half pretax profits, which pushed its shares up almost 6 per cent. It also raised its earnings forecast for the full year, citing strong growth at its energy, IT and environmental divisions, and said the value of the property portfolio at Manor Park, in which it owns a 49 per cent stake, had increased.

The shares rose €1.25, to end the day at €23.25 as analysts raised their forecasts for full-year earnings by about 5 per cent.

Elsewhere activity was subdued, with a lack of news and light trading volumes failing to provide momentum.

C&C did not manage to regain any of the ground it lost on Friday, despite dealers saying the data showing a slight decline in the group's share of the cider market in the UK was overstated. The stock slipped four cent, or 0.3 per cent, at €11.81.

Fyffes was another loser, with dealers attributing the declines to disappointment that the group was planning to delist from the main markets in Dublin and London and move to the smaller indices of the IEX and AIM instead. The shares fell three cent, or 1.8 per cent, to €1.65.

Glanbia was also hit, dropping 10 cent, or 3.4 per cent, to close at €2.85, though dealers could find no particular reason for the decline apart from the general negative sentiment in the market.

Activity was muted among the airlines, which suffered from a dearth of news and light volumes. Aer Lingus slipped two cent, or 0.7 per cent, to end the day at €2.71, while Ryanair treaded water, closing unchanged at €9.42.

- Settlement Date: November 16th