While directors of AIB may have been having a day they'd like to forget at the company's agm in Dublin, it was a similar day at the city's stock exchange. In what one trader described as "pretty grim throughout" the Iseq index losing 117.06, or 4.48 per cent, to close at 2,493.68.
AIB directors felt the wrath of shareholders in Ballsbridge but the bank's share price was far from the worst performing financial in Dublin. That dubious honour went to Irish Life & Permanent which was off 19.4 per cent to close on €2.20. Bank of Ireland was down below €1.00 at the close, shedding 18.7 per cent of its value to finish at €0.95. AIB did not escape unscathed and was down 14.44 per cent to €0.877.
Traders said that investors were exiting cyclical stocks, which see a fall in revenue during a recession, in favour of defensive ones and as a result the Irish financials fell out of favour. One broker noted that international hedge funds, which had been buying into the banks in recent weeks, were absent from the market.
One of the bright spots was cider maker C&C which traded up 1 cent to €1.95. Brokers said the company's "story is gaining traction" and a road show by its new management team was helping to spread the word.
Elsewhere in Europe the FTSE 100 closed down 2.1 per cent, on the back of disappointing US retail sales figures, banks knocked by profit taking and mining stocks weighed by weak commodity prices. European shares fell for the third straight session, pulled down mainly by financials and miners while defensive sectors such as food and pharma eked out gains.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index ended down 2.5 per cent at 831.71 points, its lowest close since May 1st.
At lunch time in New York the Dow Jones stood at 8300.58, down 1.99 per cent.