Dublin Report: The ISEQ index of Irish shares was dragged lower by renewed fears over high oil prices and a strengthening euro yesterday, closing down 37.74 points at 5,662.40 at the end of trading.
The volume of shares traded was typically light for a bank holiday in the Republic with only Bank of Ireland generating much investor interest in Dublin as two million shares changed hands.
Bank of Ireland closed down seven cents at €10.70 as banks across Europe succumbed to jitters about prospects for the global economy. AIB lost 14 cents to close at €13.67, a fall of 1 per cent on very thin trading.
Anglo Irish Bank also lost ground in Dublin, falling seven cents to close at €15.13. But Irish Life & Permanent managed to buck the trend among the Irish financial stocks, rising six cents to €13.07. This stock has been hovering around €13 for several months and is still trading below its 2004 high of about €14.
But the big Irish story of the day was undoubtedly Warner Chilcott, which attracted a firm bid of 837p sterling from a consortia involving a Goldman Sachs subsidiary, Texas Pacific and the buyout group Blackstone.
Traders in Dublin, where the firm maintains a listing but rarely trades, said there was a chance of a bidding war because of interest from at least two other parties.
In line with the general downbeat performance of the market, cement manufacturer CRH lost 20 cents to close at €18.50 and Eircom closed down one cent at €1.55 - its initial public offer price.
Shares in the drug maker Elan fell 27 cents to close at €19.68 as interest focused on a series of US-based class-action law suits that are due in court later today. One trader said that the drop also mirrored the fall in value of the dollar against the euro over the weekend.
Meanwhile, Ryanair lost the share price gains that it made last week on further fears over the price of fuel. The airline stock slipped back three cents to close at €3.70, close to its 2004 low.
