Global stocks rose on Tuesday ahead of planned remarks from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell after rates were cut last week.
Dublin
Euronext Dublin finished the day up 2.3 per cent as three of the major players on the index logged strong performances.
Bank of Ireland was up 3.3 per cent, significantly outperforming AIB which finished slightly down on the day despite little newsflow for either lender.
Cavan-based insulation specialist Kingspan finished up 8.2 per cent after it said it is considering floating its advanced building systems unit Advnsys, which is focused on the global data centres boom, and could to be worth €6 billion.
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“If Kingspan was to IPO 25 per cent of Advnsys based on peer multiples, a valuation of circa €6 billion is not unattainable,” said Davy analyst Flor O’Donoghue. “In such a scenario, a byproduct would be that the proceeds would also effectively eliminate the group’s debt.”
The third major factor in the index’s performance was Ryanair, which was up 3.1 per cent at close of business on the back of sector strength after TUI, Europe’s biggest tour operator, held its annual and midterm financial targets steady despite geopolitical turmoil.
Meanwhile, agribusiness group Origin Enterprises finished flat after it reported operating profit of €99 million, which represented a rise of 10 per cent. The stock is up nearly 46 per cent this year.
London
Shares in London edged higher, led by retailers, while a weaker sterling further boosted the exporter-heavy FTSE 100 index.
The benchmark FTSE 100 rose 0.2 per cent, while the domestically focused FTSE 250 gained 0.8 per cent.
An index of retailers’ stocks rose about 3 per cent, boosted by a 15.2 per cent surge in Kingfisher after the home improvement retailer raised its full-year profit outlook after a better-than-expected first half.
Other major retailers also advanced, with JD Sports Fashion rising 1.6 per cent, Frasers up 2.3 per cent, and Howden Joinery gaining 3.5 per cent.
Among other stocks, Serco Group was among the top gainers in the FTSE 250, up 4.4 per cent, after a unit of the British outsourcing firm secured a contract to provide training and simulator services to the US Air Force.
Europe
On the continent, the Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.6 per cent, while the Cac 40 in Paris closed up 0.5 per cent and the Dax 40 in Frankfurt ended 0.4 per cent to the good.
Euro zone bond yields were little changed on Tuesday after the release of mixed business activity data from the bloc and heavy government bond issuance.
Germany’s 10-year yield, the euro zone benchmark, was little changed at 2.75 per cent, just below a two-week high of 2.762 per cent reached on Monday.
Market expectations for European Central Bank easing remained steady after the data, keeping shorter-end yields little changed.
Futures markets are pricing in about 10 basis points of easing by June next year, implying a 40 per cent chance of another rate cut.
New York
The Dow and the S&P 500 hit record highs on Wall Street as investors looked to Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell for clues on the rate-cut trajectory.
Gains in Boeing and banks such as Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan boosted the Dow to hit an intraday record. Boeing gained 2.1 per cent after securing an order from Uzbekistan Airways worth over $8 billion, while talks for a Chinese order were ongoing.
The S&P 500 financials sector hit a record high, while energy companies rose 2.6 per cent.
Losses in Nvidia, which slipped 1.9 per cent after hitting a record high in the previous session, and Amazon.com, which dipped 1.7 per cent, weighed on the Nasdaq.
Consumer discretionary stocks fell 0.7 per cent, with AutoZone the biggest laggard, down 2.9 per cent after its fourth-quarter profit missed estimates. – Additional reporting: Agencies
