Global stocks largely faltered on Monday – in the US, peace in the Middle East seems further away and continues to trouble investors’ confidence. Meanwhile in the United Kingdom, looming employment and inflation data led many investors to hold their bets.
Dublin
The Irish stock market began the week in the red, as typically strong trades like Kerry Group, Ryanair and Kinspan faltered. The Iseq All-Share index fell by 0.46 per cent to close at 14,365.96 on Monday.
Shares in Irish Ferries operator Irish Continental Group fell marginally to close at €7.86, as shareholders grappled with a €1.2 billion offer to acquire the company led by its chief executive and other senior officials. Late on Monday, Bluefin Bidco, who lodged the bid, confirmed it would not raise the offer any further.
The banking sector saw stronger returns than most, with shares in Bank of Ireland up 0.36 per cent to close at €19.26, AIB up 0.08 per cent to €10.84 and PTSB seeing no change at €2.94.
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Meanwhile, building materials manufacturer Kingspan’s share price fell 1.40 per cent to close at €100 even, while Ryanair also fell 0.35 per cent to close at €24.05.
London
The London Stock Exchange marked negative returns on Monday after many consumer sectors slumped, dragging big investing indexes lower. The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed at a loss for the sixth trading day in a row, dipping 0.28 per cent, while the more domestically-minded FTSE 250 index fell 0.66 per cent.
Investors in London are expected to monitor UK employment data due to be published on Tuesday as well as inflation data on Wednesday for further clues on the Bank of England’s policy outlook. They largely traded cautiously on Monday in advance of these figures.
Financials took a hit as Lloyds Banking Group declined 0.43 per cent while Barclays dipped by a further 0.98 per cent. Vodafone shed 1.56 per cent as investors reassess the company’s valuation.
British company Tullow Oil advanced 7.45 per cent, continuing positive momentum from a refinancing project it announced last week.
Europe
Elsewhere in Europe, investors suffered a setback on Monday as the pan-European Stoxx 600 index largely flattened, falling 0.22 per cent by close of market on a relatively light volume day of trading.
BP slipped 0.63 per cent by the close as the energy sector felt a further squeeze from the Middle East conflict.
Swiss food and drink package manufacturer SIG Group’s share price fell 5.38 per cent at close after a shock announcement earlier in the day that its chief executive, who had only been in that position in March, was being replaced immediately.
Dutch pharmaceutical company Agenx surged 17.12 per cent after a clinical drug trial of adults with autoimmune diseases was projected to be a success.
New York
Stocks wavered during early trading on Wall Street amid renewed violence in the Middle East, stoking investor concerns.
While the latest inflation data showed its effect on the US economy is easing, still elevated energy costs left many traders nervous about future price pressures that could make the Federal Reserve increase rates by the year-end.
The S&P 500 fell 0.20 per cent while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.40 per cent. But the Nasdaq Composite index rose 0.08 per cent before midday in New York.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) company Anthropic, known for the chatbot ClaudeAI, lifted the Nasdaq after sharing revenue-growth data with investors, which induced many to invest further in the AI data centre boom.
Peace in the Middle East seemed less likely when US president Donald Trump told Fox News he is in no hurry to end the war with Iran, causing many oil stocks to falter. – Additional reporting: Reuters/Bloomberg
