Investors waiting out deadlock in US

The crisis in Washington hung heavily on markets yesterday, with many investors thinking they might well take their profits and wait out the deadlock. Concerns about economic growth did not help matters.

Most markets were down, as was Dublin, where volumes for most stocks were light.

DUBLIN
Bank of Ireland, which announced yesterday it has entered the car insurance market with the launch of two new products, offering its customers a discount of up to 25 per cent, ended the day down 3.9 per cent at €0.22.

Building materials group CRH closed at €17.27, a fall of 1.68 per cent, which was in line with what happened with its international peers.

The market's two airline stocks fell more than the market generally. Aer Lingus fell 3.48 per cent to €1.38, while Ryanair fell 1.72 per cent to €6.11.

ICG bucked the trend, albeit on low volumes. It closed at €25.50, a rise of 0.63 per cent.

C&C was up 0.71 per cent at €4.28, and traders said volumes were reasonable.

Food stocks held their own, with Kerry closing at €44.38, a rise of 0.41 per cent, and Glanbia closing at €9.70, a rise of 0.26 per cent.

LONDON
Worries over the state of the global economy and America's debt deadlock pushed the FTSE 100 index to a three-month low.

Retailer Marks & Spencer was among the heaviest top flight fallers amid mounting worries that its latest star-studded clothing relaunch is falling flat.

Shares in the retail giant were down 3.4 per cent after shedding almost 3 per cent on Monday. Its shares were another 16.5p lower at 463.8p.

Persimmon was a rare climber among housebuilders in a lacklustre session for the sector despite lenders launching new mortgage products backed by the government's Help to Buy loan guarantees. Persimmon advanced 10p to 1077p

Barratt Developments slipped 1.1p to 308.9p on the FTSE 250, and Bovis Homes shed 6p to close at 700.5p.

EUROPE
European stocks fell for a second day, extending a four-week low, as investors watched the start of the US earnings-reporting season and efforts to end a government shutdown in the world's largest economy.

Telecom Italia fell 1.8 per cent to 61.7 cents. A reduction of the BBB- long-term rating to BB+ is the "more likely outcome" after S&P concludes its review by the end of next month, the ratings company said.

TGS Nopec Geophysical plunged 15 per cent to 147.50 kroner, its largest drop since August 2011. Sales for the full year will be between $810 million and $870 million, down from its previous forecast in the range between $920 million and $1 billion. The oilfield surveyor cited delays in getting permits for surveys.

Celesio jumped 20 per cent to €20.49, its biggest gain since January 1996 and highest price since June 2010. McKesson is in talks with majority shareholder Franz Haniel and Cie GmbH to acquire the German drug distributor and may offer to buy Celesio at about €22 a share, Dow Jones reported

NEW YORK
US stocks dipped, with the year's biggest gainers taking the hardest hits, as the lack of tangible signs of resolution of the fiscal crisis in Washington prompted a flurry of selling.

The technology sector was the biggest loser on the S&P 500, with investors seeming to target stocks that have outperformed throughout the year.

Facebook was the biggest drag on the Nasdaq, down 3.4 per cent to $48.38.

Shares of TripAdvisor lost 6 per cent to $71.35 a share, and Netflix fell 4.8 per cent to $303.11.

JC Penney rose 4.2 per cent to $8.03 after the struggling retailer reported a smaller decline in same-store sales for September compared with August. – (Additional reporting: PA, Bloomberg, Reuters)