In Europe on Monday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 gained 0.6 percent to 1,181.34 after reaching up to 1,183.52 earlier in the day.

The telecommunications sector was mixed. Nokia gained 1.1 percent to €13.06 on rumors that US company Cisco Systems could be getting ready to bid for the Finnish mobile phone manufacturer. Nokia denied any knowledge of the reports.

Alcatel was up by 0.3 percent to €9.90, but Ericsson lost 0.4 percent to SKr26.20.

The oil sector was up substantially on new record high crude oil prices. Repsol was up by 1.8 percent to €23.42, total gained 1.3 percent to €208.70, and Eni advanced by 1.7 percent to €23.66. Norsk Hydro gained 2.5 percent to NKr643 and Statoil added 2.3 percent to NKr147.50 as the two companies announced that they would develop the Troll oil and gas field off Norway at a possible cost of $8 billion.

The airlines sector was up despite rises in oil prices. Air France-KLM gained 3.6 percent to €13.68 on a rise of 9.2 percent in passengers in July, while they filled 85.2 percent of their available seats, a record. Meanwhile, Germany’s Lufthansa was up 2.1 percent to €10.70 as it announced that July traffic was 6.8 percent higher than last year in July.

In other sectors, French luxury goods company Hermes lost 1.9 percent to €162.80 although it said its half-year sales were up. Adidas-Salomon fell by 2.4 percent to €151.40 on profit-taking after its large advance last week on news that it would purchase Reebok.