Dublin market closes lower

There was no let up for the Dublin market today , as the impact of the euro zone’s financial turmoil continued to dictate the performance of the ISEQ which experienced a “horrendous day” according to one trader.

The Dublin market underperformed relative to the other main European indices, finishing off 2 and a half per cent, with the market seeing a strong sell-off towards the end of the day.

Financials took a battering, in line with banking stocks across Europe which plummeted, despite BNP Paribas posting an increase in first-quarter profit. Irish Life and Permanent was again the worst performer among the Irish financials shedding almost 6 per cent to €2.45. Both Bank of Ireland and AIB lost 4.5 per cent to close at €1.42 and €1.25 respectively.

CRH, the largest constituent on the Iseq saw a dramatic 5 per cent slide dragging down the market overall. The 99 cent fall came on top of losses yesterday after the building company issued a subdued trading update.

Fellow building stock Grafton was one of the few names to post gains during the session after the building materials group expressed optimism about UK trade despite being hit by falling sales in January due to the weather. After hitting €3.70 at one stage the stock fell back to close just under 1 per cent higher at €3.47.

Ahead of its AGM tomorrow, packaging group Smurfit Kappa also managed to end the day in positive territory, adding just under half a percent to close at €7.33 following a positive trading update from a sectoral peer.

As the threat of continuing disruption from volcanic ash receded, the two airline stocks put in a relatively strong performance, in light of the dismal performance of the rest of the market. Ryanair lost almost 1. 5 per cent to close at €3.50, while Aer Lingus rose by 2.5 per cent to close at €6.98.