DUBLIN REPORT: Iseq: 2,481.06 (-21.42) Settlement date: December 10th: THE IRISH market held up yesterday as its European peers plunged on the back of worse than expected job figures from the US.
The Iseq index of Irish shares was down 0.9 per cent at 2,481.06, outperforming the rest of Europe.
In London, the FTSE 100 index of leading stocks lost 2.7 per cent while the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index, which measures leading stocks from 18 western European markets, lost 3.8 per cent to 189.84.
Worse than expected US employment statistics drove down European markets. At lunchtime, it emerged that the numbers at work in the US fell by 533,000 last month, the biggest loss since December 1974 while the unemployment rate rose to 6.7 per cent, the highest since 1993.
In Dublin, both Aer Lingus and Ryanair rose as the possibility that the Government will at least look at a bid for the former national airline moved one step closer.
Aer Lingus was up 14.44 per cent at €1.545, while Ryanair rose 2.55 per cent to €3.015.
Elsewhere, Anglo Irish Bank recovered some ground, rising 6 per cent to 50.9 cent.
Dealers said some investors regarded the stock as being worth it at that level. Irish Life Permanent also performed well, gaining 7.24 per cent to close at €1.63.
AIB went in the opposite direction, falling 3.9 per cent to close at €1.97. Bank of Ireland fell by a similar amount to close at 98 cent, although it traded at over €1 for much of the day.
Building materials group, CRH, which now accounts for 25 per cent of the Iseq index, dropped 0.91 per cent to €17.50.
Dealers said that, in most cases, volumes were small and that the market was generally quiet, with little or no trade in second line stocks. They expect the market to remain quiet for the rest of the year.
