MARKET REPORT: Bank of Ireland set the mood on the Dublin market yesterday, with negative reaction to the company's possible takeover of Abbey National pushing the stock down 85 cents to €9.37. Most of the rest of the exchange followed suit, with the overall market closing down 2.45 per cent in line with poor performances across Europe.

Settlement Day: October 10th

Bank of Ireland came under significant pressure after the Abbey negotiations were confirmed, with more than 13 million shares changing hands. One dealer said that shareholders were "voting with their feet" on the deal, noting that its chances of success looked limited as long as the trend continued.

AIB, meanwhile, looked to benefit from its competitor's losses, closing up 5 cents at 12.25 amid reasonable demand. In other financials, Anglo Irish Bank lost 5 cents to end at €6.00, while Irish Life and Permanent fared worse, shedding 27 cents to reach €11.13.

The exchange's third main player, CRH, found some support yesterday, with investors beginning to look past last week's news of possible asbestos liability in the US. The stock traded in a range between €11.20 and €11.25, eventually closing unchanged at €11.22. Fellow heavy-hitter, Ryanair lost some ground upon Easyjet's announcement that it would meet analysts' expectations for the year, with shareholders jumping from one stock to the other. The Irish airline closed down 21 cents at €5.39.

Elsewhere, Independent News and Media's share buyback programme continued apace, with the company informing the exchange that it had purchased 510,000 shares since last Friday at prices between €1.32 and €1.40.

Company director, Mr Donal Buggy was also in the market yesterday, buying a block of 10,000 shares at €1.38. The stock lost 2 cents to end at €1.38.