Most European stock markets ended lower this evening, after worse than expected US unemployment figures, though defensive shares such as drug makers helped the London market to gain. The FTSE 100 closed up 0.4% at 5,266. The CAC in Paris lost 0.2% to finish at 3,621, while Frankfurt's DAX fell 0.3% to 6,135.
In Dublin, the ISEQ finished 14 points (0.5%) lower at 2,864, with Irish Life & Permanent ending 3.3% at €1.75. Food stocks were up, however, with Aryzta gaining 5.2% to €32.09 and Kerry climbing 2.2% to €25.10 after both companies had announced buys. Greencore also added 2% to €1.30 after a more optimistic trading statement.
On Wall Street, markets were also hit by the news of an unexpected rise in new claims for unemployment insurance, which added to concerns about a slowing economic recovery. The Dow Jones was 0.5% lower at 10,325, while the Nasdaq fell 0.8% to 2,190.
Earlier, Tokyo's Nikkei closed 0.8% lower at 9,213 after big losses on Wall Street overnight, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong lost 0.9% to 21,106.
