CRH and two main banks lead market a little higher

DUBLIN REPORT Iseq: 2,970.15 (+14.58) Settlement date: June 17th

TOGETHER WITH the Iseq index bellwether CRH, the two main banks led the Irish market a little higher on a day when its European peers were all off slightly.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European companies closed down 0.2 per cent at 885.75 points, after hitting its highest closing level in five months on Thursday.

AIBand Bank of Irelandbuilt on gains made earlier in the week, albeit on lighter volumes. Allied closed at €2.35, a jump of more than 5 per cent, while Bank of Ireland added about 2.5 per cent to finish at €2.23.

Irish Life & Permanentunderperformed on the day, selling off heavily in the afternoon session to close at €3.95, down more than 9 per cent, or 40 cent. Cement giant CRHtraded up by 24 cent to € 17.94. Ryanair, which has been losing ground over the last week, slipped a little further yesterday. The low-fares airline traded around the €3.48 mark for much of the day, and finished at €3.46, a daily drop of almost 2 per cent.

In terms of stock-specific news, Independent News & Mediaannounced yesterday that it had revised down its 2009 operating profit forecasts. However, the company also said it was optimistic of reaching agreement with bondholders on refinancing a € 200 million debt.

This news was well received by investors, brokers noted, and the stock rallied a bit on the news, gaining more than 15 per cent – or close to 4 cent – to just over 28 cent, giving it a market capitalisation of €237 million.

Elsewhere, agri-nutrition group Origin Enterprisesjumped almost 12 per cent – or 31 cent – to €2.90, on light volume. Biotech group Elan put in a good performance, closing up 18 cent at €5.90.

Aryztaalso closed the week on a positive note, adding 55 cent to its share price to close at €22.75. (Additional reporting – Reuters)