It was Memorial Day in the US yesterday, the federal holiday associated with remembering the men and women who had died while serving in the American armed forces.
Not only was Wall Street closed but so too were the exchanges in Austria, Denmark, Norway and Switzerland. Trading was thin across Europe, with the number of shares traded on the London exchange at a low not seen since Christmas.
The Iseq index closed at 3,103.72, a fall of 0.38 per cent. Volumes in Dublin were very low and share price changes were, therefore, of reduced relevance.
DUBLIN
THE BIGGEST news of the day was undoubtedly developments at Bloxham and the instruction from the Central Bank that it cease all regulated activities following the discovery of “financial irregularities” at the securities firm.
Apart from that, the other news of the day was the sale of approximately 900,000 shares in CC and a drop in that group’s share price.
Traders were unsure as to what lay behind the development though some said it may have been due to figures last week that showed weak soft drinks sales in the UK.
The stock closed at €3.37, a fall of 1.49 per cent.
The ESM-listed Agri-services group Origin Enterprises released third quarter figures that were in line with market expectations. The group said revenues increased by 22 per cent to €451.6 million with group revenue at €959 million for the first nine months of the trading year, compared with €983.5 million in the same period last year.
It said its outlook for the final quarter of the financial year “remains positive” and that it was comfortable with consensus market estimates for adjusted fully diluted earnings per share of some 44.5 cent. The share closed at €3.45, a fall of 1.46 per cent.
The most-traded stocks of the day were Ryanair, CRH, CC, Paddy Power and Glanbia.
The airline finished the day up 1.47 per cent, at €4.15, while the building materials group closed at €14.18, a rise of 0.28 per cent. Tullow Oil closed at 18.05, a rise of 3.47 per cent.
LONDON
MOST UK stocks climbed as Greek polls showed increasing support for political parties backing the country’s membership of the euro area, while rising metals prices lifted mining companies.
Rio Tinto Group and BHP Billiton Ltd advanced as copper climbed amid dwindling stockpiles in China, and as Citigroup advised raising holdings in the industry.
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA, owner of British Airways, fell after Spanish shareholder BFA-Bankia sought a bailout from the government.
The FTSE 100 Index added 0.1 per cent to 5,356.34 at the 4.30 pm close in London.
Rio Tinto, the world’s third-biggest mining company, climbed 2.2 per cent to 2,857.5 pence. BHP, the largest one, rose 0.8 per cent to 1,716.5 pence. Copper climbed for a third day in London as inventories monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange slumped for a seventh week, the longest losing streak in a year.
Xstrata, the largest exporter of coal used by power plants, gained 3 per cent to 939.8 pence.
Weir Group, the world’s largest provider of pumps to the mining industry, advanced 4 per cent to 1,614 pence for the steepest gain in the FTSE 100.
International Consolidated Airlines dropped 2.7 per cent to 137.10 pence. BFA-Bankia, a Spanish lender that owns about 12 per cent of IAG, is seeking €19 billion of government funds as it struggles with bad loans.
Capita advanced 3 per cent to 629 pence after UBS AG upgraded the supplier of services for the British army to buy from neutral and added the shares to its list of preferred stocks. The shares may climb to 725 pence each, the brokerage wrote in a report.
EUROPE
EUROPEAN STOCKS were little changed, following last week’s rally for the region’s equity benchmark, as a selloff in banks offset Greek opinion polls that eased concern the country will leave the euro.
Bankia SA sank 13 per cent after the lender said it will seek €19 billion euros of state funds and Spanish borrowing costs surged.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slipped less than 0.1 per cent to 242.47 at the close in London.
European stocks posted their first weekly gain of the month last week as China pledged to bolster growth and a three-week selloff left the Stoxx 600 at its cheapest valuation since January. The gauge has still slumped 11 per cent from this years high on March 16th amid concern Greece will fail to implement the measures required to stay in the euro.
Bankia, the lender that Spain nationalised this month, tumbled 13 per cent to €1.36 after the group said it will seek state funds as it set aside provisions for residential mortgages and lending to companies. Banco Popular retreated 7.5 percent to €1.71 and Bankinter dropped 4.3 per cent to €2.81. A gauge of bank shares lost 1 per cent, led by Spanish and Italian lenders. – (Additional reporting Bloomberg)
