Iseq: 2,923.47 (–33.12) Settlement date: February 25th: THE ISEQ index marked down in line with European peers yesterday, as tensions in north Africa and the Middle East put a "kibosh" on stock markets.
A Dublin trader noted that buyers stayed out of the market because of “big macro fears”, primarily that the current unrest in Libya will spread to other countries.
Investors are reluctant to commit capital when so much uncertainty exists. “That was a feature across all of Europe,” he said. “Buyers are staying on the sidelines until there is a bit of clarity on the situation.”
The Dublin market was down for most of the day, although a number of stocks bucked the trend.
Kerry Group got the Irish corporate reporting season off to a good start with a set of 2010 results that surprised analysts on the upside. One broker noted that the company is “really starting to fire on all cylinders now”, having delivered growth on both the food and ingredients sides of its business. The stock gained more than 3 per cent, or 85 cent, to finish at €26.25.
Dragon Oil provided the market with good news in the form of a strong set of preliminary results for 2010. The stock benefited from the spike in oil prices, according to one trader. Dragon rose almost 17 cent to €6.75.
CRH fell after its peer Wienerberger released numbers. Although the overall results were positive, Wienerberger was cautious on the US market, where CRH has a large exposure and the Dublin-headquartered company tumbled more than 3 per cent, or 51 cent, to €16.26.
Bookmaker Paddy Power finished in negative territory despite receiving shareholder approval to proceed with the acquisition of the remaining minority stake in its Australian subsidiary Sportsbet. It lost 65 cent to finish at €28.25.
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