Iseq down €5bn in past week as 'carnage' continues

MARKET REPORT: The market tumbled by another 2.9 per cent yesterday, leaving the Iseq's overall value down by more than €5 billion in a little more than a week.

The falls were both severe and evenly spread, with Elan the only stock to beat the trend by posting a positive return. Shares in the pharmaceutical firm rose by 64 cent to close at €13.95 in Dublin.

Elsewhere, as one dealer put it, it was "just carnage".

The banks were among the worst hit, with Anglo Irish Bank faring particularly badly. Shares fell well below the €12 mark, finishing 70 cent weaker at €11.85.

AIB also suffered, falling by 55 cent to €17.50. Bank of Ireland declined by 33 cent to €13.82, while Irish Life & Permanent, which is expected to offer an update on operations at its agm on Friday, shed 44 cent to finish at €18.40.

Outside the financials, Kerry stood out as a loser, despite the efforts of its chairman to show confidence in the company by buying a block of shares.

The food group dropped by €1.10, or 6.1 per cent, to €16.90 as investors continued to digest Friday's profit warning and share price weakness. Analysts moved to downgrade the stock yesterday, with Kerry's own broker, Davy, now forecasting flat earnings per share for the year of 131.6 cent. The broker had previously pencilled in 140.8 cent.

CRH failed to escape the general mood, with shares losing 85 cent to close at €25.40.

Grafton fell by 45 cent to €9.65, while Kingspan moved 49 cent lower to €12.42 despite an upgrade from UK research house Numis.

Ryanair did better than the market but still finished 15 cent weaker at €6.55. C&C was also an outperformer of sorts, limiting its fall to a nine-cent drop to €6.36. Greencore was worse off, losing 10 cent to end the session at €3.70.

An upgrade from NCB did not save Independent News & Media, which dropped by 10 cent to €2.20. Newcourt was in the same boat after an upgrade from Davy, falling by five cent to €1.35.