ALTHOUGH the Irish market was aloof from the downward slide elsewhere on Thursday, Irish shares still took heart from the rebound in European bourses yesterday. They moved firmly ahead.

Also, after nervousness about the credit growth figures on Thursday which pushed bond prices down, there was a slight rally yesterday. However, bond prices are still well down on the week.

One of the prime movers yesterday was the Bank of Ireland which surged 10p to 550p. This pushes its market capitalisation above AIB's for the first time. Dealers reported a lot of interest in the stock, which is viewed more favourably than AIB. They noted that most of Bank of Ireland's interests are in the domestic market which is in a buoyant mood.

This contrasts with AIB which has strong ties in the US. AIB added O.25p at 391.50p.

While Smurfit ended up unchanged at 177p, it had earlier been higher at 179p. Brokers noted renewed interest in the shares as many are now saying that the crucial paper market in the US has bottomed out.

Kish Resources yesterday announced it had completed the capital reorganisation and has made an application to the High Court to cancel the deferred shares and change the company's name to Nobel Resources.