AIB posts top performance of session with 10% increase

DUBLIN REPORT:Iseq: 3,118.79 (+15.55) Settlement date: June 23rd

AIB STUCK out “like a beacon” on the Dublin market yesterday, jumping more than 10 per cent. The stock’s stellar performance was driven by speculation concerning the possible sale of its stake in US bank MT to Banco Santander. AIB finished up 10 cents at €1.11.

Rival lender Bank of Ireland finished off a pretty solid week with another good performance, climbing more than 2 per cent on the day to close just below 85 cents.

Outside of the financials, drinks manufacturer CC went better after Carlsberg reported a pick-up in sales driven by the World Cup. The stock gained 1.5 per cent, or five cents, to €3.32 on decent volume.

Aer Lingus provided the only firm corporate news on the market. The former State airline, which held its annual general meeting yesterday, said that during April and May, its performance had continued to improve on last year. Lower fuel costs had contributed, it said. The carrier added 1.6 cent to finish at 76 cents.

The rest of the market was “patchy” yesterday, one broker said. Ryanair retreated a little, having been reasonably strong for most of the week. It had touched €3.88 in recent days, but the low-fares airline was trading about the €3.70 mark yesterday. The stock closed at €3.77, down three cents.

Some buying interest came back into United Drug, which has seen lacklustre levels of volume recently. The healthcare services provider added more than 3 per cent to close at almost €2.25.

Volumes in building materials group Grafton were also strong, and the stock picked up almost 3 per cent, or eight cents, to close the session on €2.93.

Overall, brokers reported decent volumes in the leading stocks, indicating renewed interest coming back into the Irish exchange as markets in general tried to push ahead.