The results may have been broadly in line with forecasts, but AIB shares fell heavily on the Dublin market as investors finally decided that a take-over bid for the banking group is simply not on and that AIB shares had been up to levels that were simply unsustainable.

The €1.00 fall by AIB to €15.70 (£12.36) accounted for the bulk of the 1.3 per cent fall in the ISEQ index, and otherwise there was little significant activity. Other financials were mixed with Bank of Ireland down 7.5 cents on €19.10 (£15.04) while merger partners Irish Life and Irish Permanent were both marginally easier, with Irish Life down 5 cents to €9.00 (£7.09) while Irish Permanent was 10 cents easier on €14.45 (£11.38).

Industrials were a mixed bunch, with some of the second-liners getting some unexpected support. The Golden Vale results were well-received and the shares moved ahead 4 cents to €1.06 (83p) - although chief executive Jim Murphy conceded that it is difficult to generate institutional support for second-liners like Golden Vale.

IWP - out of favour after profits-warnings - gained 7 cents to €1.62 (£1.28) while ITG was 10 cents lower on €5.70 (£4.49) with some talk in the market the acquisitive telecoms stock is lining up another purchase. CRH hit a new intra-day high of €16.45 before closing unchanged on €16.36 (£12.88) while Kerry bounded ahead 30 cents to €11.10 (£8.74).

Smurfit was unchanged on €1.77 (£1.39). Fishers was unchanged on €0.615 (£0.48) although there has been some chunky trading in the shares with Schroders buying 1.6 million shares to take its stake to 15.8 per cent while Halifax sold 500,000 shares to take its stake down to 6.9 per cent.