With us markets closed yesterday for Thanksgiving, the international interest focused on the merger excitement created by reports of talks between Exxon and its US competitor, Mobil.
Although dealers said that Wall Street's inactivity put a damper on the Irish market, oil too proved to be the main interest in Irish stocks, albeit on a much smaller scale, with the acquisition by the Dubai government of a 46 per cent stake in Dragon Oil.
It caused a ripple of excitement in the exploration sector and will increase interest in that stock following the uncertainty created after the seller, the former chairman, Mr Arifin Panigoro, announced his intention to divest himself of the stake last May.
Dragon did not deal on the ISEQ, but was up 1.5p to 20.5 sterling on the London Stock Exchange.
On an otherwise quiet day, the banks provided the main focus of interest with Bank of Ireland still basking in the afterglow of its recent bumper profits ending up by 20p to 1422p (1249p sterling). [ BO]
AIB held on to Wednesday's closing price of 1040p in eight deals and Irish Life also held its ground, remaining at 595p. Bank of Ireland Asset Management made a disclosure that it now owns 9.44 per cent of the stock following a purchase of 10,000 shares at £6.05. Irish Life's possible bride-to-be, Irish Permanent, was back 20p to 925p.
Smurfit nudged closer to Tuesday's 135p price when it gained 1/2p yesterday and closed at 133p following positive reaction to the rationalisation plan announced by its US associate, Smurfit Stone. However the market will await "a tightening" in product prices in the next quarter, one dealer noted.
There was further profit-taking at CRH, when it shed 10p, closing at 1035p in six deals. Adare provided some focus of interest among second-liners after better-than-expected results in a difficult sector showed a 22 per cent rise in pre-tax profit from £7.2 million to £8.8 million in the six months to October 31st, 1998. Signalling interest in making further acquisitions, Adare moved up 5p to 650p. Industrial holdings group DCC came "off the boil", according to dealer, and eased back 15p to 590p although the continued favourable Irish economic conditions should hold the price above 500p.
Ryanair was also a bit weaker yesterday, easing back 10p to 375p, although there is no discernible shareholder effect from the news this week that plans to operate five new routes from Dublin to mainland European cities had been cancelled.
Dunloe Ewart is stepping up its push into Northern Ireland. Plans by the group were revealed yesterday for a £100 million shopping centre in Belfast. It is already involved in the regeneration of the city's River Lagan frontage around the Waterfront Concert Hall. Its London price was up 1/2p yesterday to 29p sterling (33p), although its Irish price was unchanged on one deal at 31p.
