Kerry Group was also in the red, with the food company sliding 3 per cent to €88.66, while Bank of Ireland closed flat at €9.13.The FTSE 100 nudged down almost 0.3 per cent as investors weighed December inflation data, which eased further from the previous month but still hovered in double-digit territory. The mid-cap FTSE 250 also slid about 0.3 per cent.
British luxury retailer Burberry rose 3.3 per cent after chief financial officer Julie Brown said she was seeing “very promising” signs in China so far this month, even as the luxury group’s sales growth slowed to 1 per cent in the quarter ended December. ASM International jumped 9.8 per cent after the Dutch semiconductor supplier reported fourth-quarter revenue ahead of its forecast, citing better-than-expected supply chain conditions and higher conversion of the backlog.
Tesla rose 1.5 per cent for the second straight session as analysts noted the electric-vehicle maker’s recent price cuts to top models gave it a competitive edge.