MARKET REPORT: POORLY PERFORMING financial stocks in London and Europe dragged down the Irish banks yesterday, leaving the market in negative territory following the close of business.

Brokers said that as a result of generally poor sentiment towards international banks, Irish financial institutions opened "soft" and ended the day down overall, despite some improvement in their performance during trade.

Traders said that the day was quiet, and markets everywhere were weak. The financials were the focus of much of the business.

Anglo Irish Bank was one of the biggest losers, falling 32.4 cent to €8.05 by the close of business after more than 2.7 million shares changed hands yesterday. Much of the business was done at between €8 and €8.20.

Bank of Ireland dropped 11 cent to €9.47, a fall of 1.15 per cent on volumes of close to 2.5 million shares. AIB performed a little better, shedding 16 cent to end the day at €13.94, after close to 1.3 million units shares were traded.

But there was better news in other sectors. Food group Greencore was up 22 cent, almost 6 per cent, at €3.95. Volumes were "exceptionally" high for the company, with more than 1.5 million shares traded in Dublin.

Elan gained 36.3 cent to close at €15.083, a jump of 2.47 per cent. During the day, Goldman Sachs said it had cut its holding in the company to less than 3 per cent last week. However, brokers said that a routine announcement of this nature would have no impact on the share price.

Grafton Group director Fergus Malone exercised 159,000 share options in the company. The building materials and DIY operation also enjoyed a good day, adding 5.8 cent to close at €5.909.

Packaging group Smurfit Kappa also did well, although volumes were light. The company gained 16.1 cent to close at €8.40.

FTSE 100: 6,329.97 (-59.43) Settlement date: April 11th