Iseq: 2,903.19 (–24.42) Settlement date: February 7th:HAVING STARTED off relatively well in early morning trade, the Iseq drifted off during the day, to finish the session just shy of 1 per cent lower, mirroring the European trend, which saw markets close fairly flat on the day.

It was a lacklustre day in volume terms, though some stock-specific news gave rise to activity in early morning trade. DCC posted strong third-quarter results in an interim management statement issued as markets opened. However, its share price fell back closing down 1.2 per cent at €22.62.

The report of management changes at building materials group Grafton which will see former BSS chief executive Gavin Slark replace Michael Chadwick lifted Grafton’s share price which closed up 3.6 per cent at €3.55.

Fellow construction stock CRH finished the day close to ½ per cent lower at €15.93, as the market awaited results from US peer companies, due overnight.

Aer Lingus continued to feel the effect of its cabin crew dispute, although declines were limited to a fraction of a per cent, leaving the airline at €1.019 at the close.

While there was some activity in Ryanair, it fell back 1.7 per cent to €3.65, undoing the gains registered in the wake of its update on Monday, as concerns about oil price weighed on sentiment. According to one broker, the fact that Ryanair tends to be held in industrial portfolios, may be a reason for its fall, as industrial stocks across Europe took a hit.

Greencore rose by 4.5 per cent to €1.20, as the company did not rule out the possibility of a revised offer for Northern Foods.

Elsewhere, Bank of Ireland and AIB finished higher in line with banks across Europe. Bank of Ireland added 0.8 per cent to €0.34, while AIB, which is now listed on the ESM, was up 1.6 per cent at just under €0.25. Irish Life and Permanent shed close to 1 per cent to finish at €0.90.