The Dublin market was down by 1.3 per cent as mid-week rumours about takeovers of Bank of Ireland and AIB evaporated into thin air. As a result many investors decided now was the time to take profits and AIB slipped down from €16.70 (£13.15) to €16.20 (£12.76). The high volumes of trading in AIB stock was a sign a profit-taking session had set in. Bank of Ireland was not subject to the same selling pressures, but did fall back from €19.80 (£15.59) to €19.00 (£14.96).
There was some good news for Smurfit shareholders, who have seen their company increase its value by 16 per cent on the week. Yesterday it climbed from €1.63 (£1.28) to €1.68 (£1.32) on the back of optimistic news about the paper and packaging market internationally. The decision by Bear Stearns to rank the stock as a "buy" also helped, said dealers.
The declaration that the Irish Permanent's offer for Irish Life has become unconditional was a boost to both stocks. Irish Permanent added six cents to €14.16 (£11.15), while Irish Life was up slightly from €8.49 (£6.69) to €8.50 (£6.69). Trading in Independent Newspapers was healthy, with the stock moving up from €3.20 (£2.52) to €3.24 (£2.55) in volumes above the normal level of activity.
Elsewhere there was good news for IWP International, which has been wilting since a profit warning was announced a week ago. It fought its way back from €1.37 (£1.08) to €1.40 (£1.10). Ovoca shares continued their rise upward, from 0.47 cents (37p) to 50 cents (40p), although there is still no news on a substantial mineral find which the company has flagged.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/VR3765MFOBH2NMV2QNICYDF67M.png)