More good news from the US boosted stocks across Europe today, raising fresh hopes that the pre-Christmas week would end with a Santa rally.

Jobless claims in the US fell for the second week running, dropping to 364,000, its lowest level since April 2008.

Investors took it as a sign that the world’s biggest economy may be picking up.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 1.1 per cent to 239.78 at the close, bringing this week’s gains to 2.6 percent, although the index is still down 13 per cent overall this year.

The Iseq index of Irish shares rose 0.92 per cent to close at 2836.06, slightly below other European indices.

The market’s biggest stock, CRH, added 1.45 per cent to close at €14.71. The international building materials group was admitted to London’s blue-chip FTSE 100 index at the close of business today and has made ground since Monday, when it opened in Dublin at €13.35.

In a related sector, insulation specialist, Kingspan, added 1.88 per cent to close at €6.52.

DIY and builders’ merchant, Grafton, gained 2.15 per cent to close at €2.376.

Exploration group, Providence Resources, released an upbeat end-of-year statement yesterday, but investors were only interested in selling the stock, which fell 3.61 per cent to end the day at €2.40.

Elsewhere, bookmaker Paddy Power’s shares gained ground, jumping 1.09 per cent to close at €42.56.

Packaging specialist, Smurfit Kappa, also had a good day, adding just over 2 per cent to close at €4.80.

DCC, whose largest business is oil distribution, added 1.73 per cent to close at €18.50.