The Irish market got off to a bullish start today, but early gains fizzled out over the course of the day to leave it just slightly ahead at the close.
Airline stocks fared well after the International Energy Agency's decision to release 60 million barrels of oil stocks into the market pushed oil prices down below the $110 level on Thursday for the first time in months.
Ryanair traded on reasonable volumes, and tipped €3.70 at one point. The low fares airline pared its gains by the close to finish at €3.62, about half a per cent up.
Rival carrier Aer Lingus, which has been under pressure of late, recovered as buyers came back into the stock today. It rose almost 3 per cent, or two cent, to 72 cent.
The top spot was once again reserved for mining stock Kenmare Resources, which has been going from strength to strength in recent weeks as the price of rare earth minerals continue to rise. On the London Stock Exchange, where most of the trading in the name takes place, Kenmare rose the bones of 8 per cent to 58p.
Convenience food company Greencore saw decent buying interest which pushed it about 1.5 per cent, or almost two cent, higher to €1.03.
Overall the Iseq index lagged its European peers, closing 8.35 points up, or about 0.3 per cent, at 2,882.57. Across Europe, the UK's FTSE 100 Index gained 0.8 per cent and Germany's DAX Index advanced 0.6 per cent, while France's CAC 40 Index climbed 1 per cent.
Additional reporting - Bloomberg
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