Equity markets sold off today as rifts deepened between EU authorities over the Greek debt crisis. The Iseq index was not immune, retreating in line with its European counterparts.

Building materials group CRH made a weak start to the day, and disappointing US data on homebuilders' sentiment published in the afternoon added further pressure to the stock. It closed the session at €14.17, down more than 2.5 per cent or 37.5 cent.

Builders merchant and DIY retailer Grafton Group traded as low as €3.22 at one point on no news, but it staged a recovery to close just below €3.33, leaving it four cent off on the day.

Food ingredients group Kerry surprised brokers by losing ground as it is a considered a very defensive stock.

“It tends to do well in a market where people are concerned about growth,” a broker said, explaining that the stock’s behaviour today was unusual given the market concerns surrounding the turmoil in Greece. However, Kerry was among the weakest names on the day, shedding close to 3 per cent, or 77 cent, to €28.33.

One of the few strong performances of the day was delivered by drug manufacturer Elan, which rose almost 3 per cent, or 20 cent, to €7.56.

One broker said the market lacked direction today because of the macro backdrop. “Really the market is lacking conviction [because of] uncertainty," he said. “And the market hates uncertainty.”

This uncertainty has resulted in a dearth of buyers. However, on the sell side, deleveraging continues as investors unwind their positions, and this is having an impact on stock prices, he said.

Overall the Iseq index fell 1.1 per cent to 2,888.22. The UK's FTSE 100 slid 0.9 per cent, France's CAC 40 dropped 1.4 per cent and Germany's DAX retreated 1.2 per cent.

Additional reporting - Bloomberg