Global stocks steadied on Thursday as a recent rally fuelled by Donald Trump’s spending plans for artificial intelligence infrastructure fizzled and as caution set in over what the new US president’s next moves on trade might be.
Dublin
Outperforming its neighbours, the Iseq index advanced by 1.5 per cent, led higher by home builders, banks and airlines.
Ryanair gained 3.6 per cent to close the session at €19.90 per share. On Thursday, the airline announced plans to fly a record 123 routes from Dublin Airport this summer.
Home builders Glenveagh and Cairn Homes, meanwhile, jumped by 3 per cent and 0.4 per cent €1.60 and €2.14 per share respectively.
Bank of Ireland added close to 2.4 per cent to finish the session at €9.64 per share while AIB moved more than 2 per cent higher to €5.64 per share.
London
The FTSE 100′s recent rally stalled somewhat on Thursday, finishing the session up by almost 0.2 per cent after touching record highs in the previous session.
The mid-cap FTSE 250, meanwhile, fell by 0.22 per cent.
In earnings-driven moves, CMC Markets dropped 16.8 per cent after the trading platform’s muted forecast fell short of investors’ heightened expectations following upbeat projections from industry peers.
IG Group slipped 6.3 per cent despite the online trading platform posting a 30 per cent rise in its first-half profit.
Penneys owner Associated British Foods dropped 2.6% after it reported weak trading in its main UK market in the Christmas quarter and cut annual sales forecast for its Primark budget fashion retailer.
Europe
The blue-chip Stoxx 50 advanced by 0.2 per cent while the cross-Continental Stoxx 600 moved 0.4 per cent higher on Thursday.
Shares in Puma lost more than 22 per cent of their value as the German sportswear-maker delayed its margin target and decided to cut costs after reporting a worse-than-expected annual profit.
Rival Adidas had on Tuesday reported better-than-expected preliminary fourth-quarter results but was essentially flat on the session.
Among the sectors, technology slid 1.5 per cent, led by a 4.4 per cent decline in computer chip equipment supplier ASML.
Tech stocks had rallied in the previous session, spurred by US President Trump’s mammoth spending plans for artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Limiting losses on Stoxx 600, the banks index gained 0.7 per cent after Swedbank proposed a larger-than-expected hike in its annual dividend and posted fourth-quarter operating earnings above market expectations. Its shares rose 4.6 per cent.
New York
US stocks hovered around session highs by closing bell in Europe after President Trump said he would push for interest-rate cuts and urged Opec to lower crude prices.
The S&P 500 added 0.2 per cent while he Nasdaq 100 slid 0.3 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up by 0.6 per cent.
American Airlines slid by more than 7 per cent after warning of a surprise loss to start the year as it tries to win back business Travellers and battle high costs, disappointing investors following a string of bullish forecasts from other large carriers.
Meanwhile, semiconductor shares slumped across the board with Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices and Broadcom all down amid concerns about whether the industry that has powered the current bull market can live up to investor expectations.
“The threat of tariffs continues to hang over markets, but the rapidly declining half-life of headlines shows you the market is already numb to the shenanigans,” said Brent Donnelly, president at Spectra Markets. – Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters
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