The Iseq was down 1.7 per cent at lunchtime today with financial and airline stocks pulling the index lower. The overall index was 52 points down at 2906.58 at 12.30pm.
Bank of Ireland, which posted better than expected results this morning, was down 3.5 per cent to €0.81.
The State's largest lender booked a €1.24 billion loss in the six months to June 30th but said it now has greater control of its destiny and that it was capable of working outside the Government guarantee.
AIB, which recently published considerably worse figures than its biggest rival, was down 4 per cent to €0.83.
Despite posting well received figures and a positive outlook for the rest of 2010, Smurfit Kappa shed 1.7 per cent in the morning's trading and fell 13 cent to €7.71.
Aer Lingus, today facing the result of a ballot on industrial action connected to its €97 million restructuring plan, was trading at €0.95, down 2 per cent. Ryanair was trading down 2.5 per cent at €3.80.
In London, the FTSE 100 Index slid 77.09, or 1.4 per cent, to 5,299.32 at 12.29pm. The gauge has rallied 10 per cent from this year's low on July 1st as companies reported earnings that topped analysts' estimates and concern eased that the global economy may be tipping back into recession.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index was down 1.3 per cent to 256.45 at 12.40pm. The index is trading down for the second day on the back of comments from the US Federal Reserve saying the pace of economic recovery is likely to be "more modest" than forecast.
Additional reporting: Bloomberg
