Iseq: 2,485.65 (+14.14) Settlement date:September 2nd

THE FACT that the London market was closed on Monday provided the usual boost to business yesterday and the Dublin market opened the day fairly strongly.

Some less than encouraging consumer confidence figures from the United States put a dampener on things around midday, traders said, but the market later shrugged them off and recovered.

That said, volumes were still light, evidence of the fact that, among other factors, it is still August.

Paddy Power announced that its profits increased 15 per cent to €57 million in the first half of the year as returns from all businesses bar its Irish betting offices increased during the period.

However, the stock lost 2.54 per cent on the day, at €34.6. Traders speculated that investors could have been expecting better, or that investors who had put money into the stock in recent times, decided to reap some profit. There was nothing in the company’s disclosure that caused concern.

Ferry operators ICG reported a 3.4 per cent increase in revenues to €126.6 million in the six months to the end of June 2011 but its operating profit fell by 26.1 per cent to €6.5 million. The stock ended unchanged at €14.7.

Another stock linked to tourist activity, Ryanair, continued to hover about the €3 mark. It closed the day up 1.63 per cent, at €3.04

DCC rose nearly 3 per cent, to close at €18.4. CRH underperformed the market, closing at €11.56, a rise of just 0.2 per cent.

There was a bit of volume in Independent News & Media, with traders wondering why investor Dermot Desmond has increased his shareholding. It rose 14 per cent, to €0.32.

The yield on Irish 10-year bonds dipped below 8.5 per cent, despite concerns about Italy’s difficulties in selling €8 billion into the market.