European stocks felt a big boost by reports indicating Ukraine peace prospects are strong as investors weigh up opportunities in the UK budget due to be announced tomorrow.
Dublin
The Iseq All-Share index ended the session at 12,624.04, up 1.75 per cent in a strong day which saw just two shares lose ground.
Ryanair’s chief executive Michael O’Leary today noted that the airliner’s Christmas bookings are improved year-on-year, with just 40 per cent of seats remaining to be sold until the end of December. Ryanair shares gained steadily after the comments, hitting as high as €28.45 before locking in an 2.9 per cent gain to €28.04 at close.
READ MORE
Despite this strong performance, the airliner wasn’t the biggest gainer. That was building materials specialist Kingspan Group which added 3.87 per cent to reach €71.05.
Similarly, the home builders Cairn and Glenveagh saw strong gains adding 3.05 per cent and 2.12 per cent respectively.
Traders linked the gains in Dublin and across Europe to positive sentiments towards optimistic developments in the peace process for the Ukraine war.
London
UK stocks edged higher in choppy trading as investors awaited a highly anticipated budget this week which is expected to include significant tax measures, while key US economic data was also in focus.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed up 0.8 per cent. The FTSE 250 index of domestically oriented UK firms rose about 1 per cent, logging its best day in over a month.
Personal goods stocks led the sectoral gains, rising 3.9 per cent with Burberry up 4.7 per cent.
Construction and materials advanced 2.5 per cent, with Ibstock up 5.9 per cent.
Retailers added 2.4 per cent helped by a 5.9 per cent gain in Kingfisher after the home improvement retailer raised its annual profit forecast.
Speciality insurer Beazley plunged 9.19 per cent after the company cut its annual insurance written premiums forecast.
Among other moves, food catering firm Compass Group shares fell 1.67 per cent after the company forecast profit growth and organic revenue growth for 2026 roughly in line with expectations. Domino’s Pizza Group lost 1.35 per cent after chief executive Andrew Rennie stepped down.
Banks gained 1.5 per cent after a Goldman Sachs note referred to a Financial Times report that the sector would be spared from taxes.
The travel and leisure sector recovered from early losses, and gained 0.9 per cent. Wizz Air rose 3.6 per cent. EasyJet fell 1.5 per cent on winter sales concerns.
Europe
European shares extended gains on Tuesday, led by materials and financial stocks, as investors continued to draw optimism from prospects of a ceasefire in Ukraine and expectations of interest rate cuts in the world’s largest economy.
Prospects for an end to the nearly four-year-old Russia-Ukraine war continued to drive the STOXX 600 index, with European construction and materials stocks extending their rally, up 2.4 per cent.
Germany’s Heidelberg Materials jumped 6.6 per cent, cement maker Buzzi rose 6.1 per cent, and stone-wool manufacturer Rockwool surged 4.5 per cent.
The European defence sector was up 1 per cent after sliding over 5 per cent in the last two sessions on expectations that the war in Ukraine was approaching its end. Dutch bank ABN Amro surged 6.4 per cent after announcing plans to cut 5,200 full-time jobs by 2028 as part of its cost-cutting promises.
New York
Wall Street’s main indexes were mixed in midafternoon trading as investors took stock of economic data that had been delayed by the US government shutdown, while Nvidia’s shares tumbled on concerns over intensifying competition in the AI chip space.
Alphabet’s shares rose following reports that it is in discussions with Facebook-parent Meta Platforms over the use of Google’s AI chips in its data centres from 2027.
Nvidia, which currently dominates the AI chips sector, fell to hit to a two-month low, while Advanced Micro Devices fell.
Retailers got a lift too after department store operator Kohl’s jumped and clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch surged, with both companies raising their annual earnings forecasts. – Additional reporting, Reuters, PA.
