The Irish market finished in positive territory today, driven higher by a strong performance from airline stocks as concerns over the impact of the Icelandic ash cloud eased.
Airlines went better across Europe today on the back of speculation that the Grimsvoten volcano has stopped erupting. The sector had been hit by heavy selling at the start of the week when news of the latest volcanic ash cloud emerged, with most carriers down 4 per cent on Monday alone.
Ryanair was lifted almost 2 per cent, or about six cent, to close at €3.46 as its management continue their post-results investor roadshow. Rival airline Aer Lingus gained more than 3 per cent, or 2.5 cent, to 82 cent.
Pharmaceuticals firm Elan delivered the star performance of the day, advancing 5 per cent, or 30 cent, to €6.18 after announcing an investment in US firm Proteostasis Therapeutics.
Cement group CRH remained under pressure and underperformed its peers on the day, falling more than 1 per cent, or 18.5 cent, to just below €15.00.
Overall the Iseq index rose about 9 points to 2,934.00. Across Europe, Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 rose 0.3 per cent. The UK's FTSE 100 gained 0.2 per cent.
Additional reporting - Bloomberg