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ISEQ rebounds past the 3,300 level

Friday, November 02 12:41:55

The ISEQ soared past the 3,300 level for the first time in three weeks this morning as investors drew hope for Ireland from Angela Merkel's comments and as markets await key US jobs figures later today.

By 12:30, the index was up 31.24 points to 3,313.44.

The most closely watched US employment report in four years will be released later today, with market expectations heightened following better-than-expected ADP employment numbers yesterday. 158,000 private jobs were added to the labour force in October according to ADP, versus a consensus estimate of 140,000. Within the numbers, the gains were broadly based, with a notable acceleration in construction employment of 23,000 in the month as well as sharp gains in the services sector. This trend in construction employment should continue given that construction spending has been ticking up in recent months - residential construction spending was up 2.8pc in September alone.

Shares in CRH, which has a huge presence in the US, rose 17c to E14.81.

ICON, the Irish based provider of outsourced services to the pharma, biotechn and medical device industries, has posted a 19pc jump in revenues in the third quarter and announced it is quitting the ISEQ for Wall Street's NASDAQ. Net revenues for the quarter grew 19pc to $286 million compared to $241 million in the same quarter last year. Income from operations, before restructuring and other non-recurring charges, for the quarter was $20.9 million or 7.3pc of net revenue, compared with $1.1 million or 0.5pc of net revenue for the same period last year. Net income before restructuring and other non-recurring charges was $17.7 million or 29 cents per share compared to $1.5 million or 2 cents per share in Q3 2011. Shares were flat at E18.51.