CRH the top performer as financials lose ground

DUBLIN REPORT: Iseq:3,015.84 (+4.60) Settlement date:March 9th

CRH CAME to the rescue yesterday on what would otherwise have been a down day on the Dublin stock exchange.

The cement giant outperformed its international peers with a 2.4 per cent jump, and finished a few cent off its daily high at €17.82.

“CRH was the standout name that kept us afloat,” a broker said.

The banks’ recent run of good form came to an end. AIB fell 10 per cent at one stage, although it recovered somewhat to finish down 7 per cent at €1.34. Bank of Ireland slipped about 4.3 per cent, or 5 cent, to €1.16.

One broker pointed out that these losses were “nothing huge” compared to the upward movements in the two names last week. AIB had gained 47 per cent in the previous three trading sessions, and yesterday’s slide was attributed to profit-taking rather than any specific news.

Irish Life & Permanent did not escape the sell-off either, and fell 2.6 per cent, or 8.5 cent, to just over €3.14.

Insurance group FBD was one of the few stocks other than CRH to enjoy a positive session, and added 15 cent to close at €6.10.

In the airline sector, budget airline Ryanair nudged ahead by 2½ cent and finished close to €2.52, while Aer Lingus slipped 1 cent to 60 cent.

Elsewhere, food stocks Glanbia, which reports annual figures on Wednesday, and Fyffes, which did so last week, shed about 2 and 4 per cent respectively, and closed at €2.65 and 40 cent. Cider manufacturer C&C also lost its footing on the day, retreating 2.2 per cent, or 6 cent, to €2.80.

Building materials group Kingspan was also off yesterday, falling almost 4 per cent, or 21 cent, to close at a daily low of €5.55.

Overall, the Iseq index had a fairly flat day, but succeeded in moving about six points ahead of the 3,000 mark, closing at 3,015.84.