Market Report: The market was cheated out of its expected Bank of Ireland boost yesterday, with Wednesday's inadvertent release of the bank's interim numbers causing little in the way of morning-after ripples.
Settlement Day: November 18th
The ISEQ as a whole ended more or less unchanged, with Bank of Ireland itself dropping six cents to close at 10.65 after almost 4.5 million shares changed hands. Dealers said some investors were disappointed at the limited guidance offered by the group in its results statement.
AIB spent most of the day giving up early gains, eventually finishing one cent higher at 12.58. Irish Life & Permanent outperformed the sector by climbing 17 cents to 12.28 but the move came on light volume. Investors' reaction to probable strike action at Permanent TSB should become apparent today. Anglo Irish added five cents to end at €10.22.
Some late interest surrounded Waterford Wedgwood, which surprised the market with news that it would report interim numbers today. The results are likely to be accompanied by an update on the firm's wider financial position, which has been uncertain since a refinancing deadline set by bankers passed at the end of last month. The company's shares were unchanged at 29 cents last night.
Ryanair bounced back from Wednesday's Charleroi-related falls, adding seven cents to close at 6.63. NCB said the airline was unlikely to face a fine of any more than 10 million in the European Commission's final Charleroi ruling, but predicted that a negative decision on its low-cost deals would also lead to an "annual hit" of 10 million in the future as higher costs led to higher fares and consequent passenger "leakage".
Independent News & Media was one of the busiest stocks on the day, with 3.6 million shares traded as it fell three cents to 1.88. Good volume was also recorded in Arcon, which closed unchanged at 4.2 cents after almost 1.5 million units changed hands.
