Iseq: 2,900.24 (+13.10)

THE ISEQ bounced yesterday as European equities snapped a recent losing streak.

The rebound came after Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke signalled that further stimulus is being considered for the US economy, while investors bet that euro zone leaders may deliver a debt crisis solution at an emergency summit later this week.

Though Irish bonds plunged yesterday, the stock market recovered, gaining 0.7 per cent.

Food group Greencore was the stand-out winner of the day, adding more than 14 per cent, or 12.5 cent, to close at €1.00. The stock initially sold off on Tuesday after announcing it is to buy British supermarket supplier Uniq. However, after looking through the details of the proposed transaction, investors seemed to be taking a reasonably positive view, a broker said.

Grafton Group, which sold off aggressively in the aftermath of its disappointing trading update last week, also got back on track. It gained almost 3 per cent, or eight cent, to €2.90, though it is still some way off recovering all the ground lost in recent sessions.

Bank of Ireland “nil paids”, which give shareholders the right to participate in the lender’s upcoming rights issue and buy shares at 10 cent, continued to trade at the start of the session but there was little value in them. However, once the bank’s ordinary share price dipped below 10 cent, the “nil paids” held little attraction. “It is expected that a lot of people won’t be taking up their rights,” a broker said.

Origin Enterprises provided some stock-specific news with the announcement that it has bought the fertiliser business of Carrs Milling Industries.

However, the news came too late in the day for the market to digest it, and the stock finished unchanged at €3.60.

Settlement date: July 18th