Market Report:The Irish market got off to a jittery start yesterday, with a sell-off in the Asian markets setting a negative tone.
Although the Iseq found its feet again over the course of the day, the index finished down 31.04 points at 9,601.77.
Ryanair emerged as the star performer, boosted by results reported by low-fares US airline SouthWest. Dealers observed strong buying interest in the stock, with almost four million shares traded. This pushed its price up by 2.29 per cent, or 14 cent, to end the day at €6.26.
C&C staged a good recovery after a weak day on Wednesday, as investor interest began to build in the lead-up to the drinks company's results due out in mid-May. It gained 21 cent, or 1.17 per cent, to close at €12.53.
Smurfit Kappa, on the other hand, lost ground following its strong rally earlier in the week. It closed at the end of a volatile day down 35 cent, or 1.75 per cent, at €19.65, as investors took profits.
The construction sector was out of favour, as Pulte Homes, the second-largest US homebuilder, reported its first-quarter loss will be worse than expected.
CRH was trading as low as €31.50 at one point yesterday and, although it managed to bounce back to €32.04, this was still a drop of 14 cent.
Grafton Group tumbled 17 cent to finish at €11.20, while Kingspan shed 22 cent, or 1.05 per cent, to close at €20.75.
The financial sector also underperformed. Anglo Irish Bank slipped by 12 cent to €16.25, on good volume. Irish Life and Permanent lost 1.13 per cent, or 24 cent, to finish the day at €20.96.
Paddy Power also had a poor day, dipping by 22 cent to €20.40.
