European stock markets turned in a mixed performance today, with the London FTSE shedding 0.1% to close at 4,230. In Paris the CAC fell 0.2% to finish at 3,117 while in Frankfurt the Dax rose 0.3 % to 4,707 points.
Dublin's ISEQ index closed down 27 points (1%) at 2,677. Banking stocks were mixed. AIB closed down 5.1% (9 cent) at €1.65, while Bank of Ireland finished higher at €1.73, a gain of 2.4% (4 cent). Other main movers included Kerry Group which gained just over 6% to close at €16.15, and Smurfit Kappa which fell 7.8% (29 cent) to close at €3.43.
On Wall Street a short time ago, the Dow Jones was down 0.25% at 8,318 while the Nasdaq was down 0.3% at 1.761, as Boeing once again delayed the first test flight of its Dreamliner aircraft and housing data pointed to a sluggish economic recovery.
Earlier, Asian stocks tumbled with Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index slumping 277 points (2.8%) to end at 9,550 as fears returned that a global economic recovery may not be as quick as hoped following a grim report from the World Bank.
