In Europe on Tuesday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 gained 0.13 percent higher to 1,218.06, its highest level at the close of a session since May of 2002.

The automobile manufacturing sector was up as analysts said the sector would grow by 22 percent in 2005, well ahead of its prediction at the beginning of the year that it would grow by 10 percent.

Porsche gained 2.3 percent to €685, Volkswagen was up 3.1 percent to €47.22, and BMW advanced by 2.5 percent to €37.89 after Goldman Sachs upgraded it on Monday from “in line” to “outperform”.

DaimlerChrysler gained 2 percent to €41.95 after it announced that it has averted a strike with Canadian workers by coming to agreement on a three-year deal on wages.

French insurer AGF gained 1.9 percent to €78.55 while it’s German parent company, Allianz, was up 0.8 percent to €106.19.

Meanwhile Danish company Moller Maersk, the largest container shipping company in the world, lost 3.1 percent to DKr65,400 on a ratings cut from “buy” to “reduce” from UBS. UBS also lowered the company’s target price from DKr70,000 to DKr60,000, warning that freight flows were slowing down even as capacity was rising.

Meanwhile in Germany, the Xetra Dax gained 0.8 percent on the day to 4,962.86 after sharp losses on Monday in the wake of the outcome of Sunday’s elections there.

In Europe on Tuesday, equities markets were down as concerns in several areas affected investors. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 0.7 percent to 1,201.33, while in Frankfurt the Xetra Dax fell by 1.7 percent to 4,903.15.

Among the worries leading to the declines were continuing high oil prices and the general state of the global economy. The biggest immediate worry, however, seemed to be the German parliamentary elections scheduled for Sunday.

The gap between the two leaders has been shown in polls to be narrowing, and investors are worried that the lack of a clear victory by one or the other will result in a coalition government that will not be willing or able to act on economic reform.

German carmakers seem especially hard-hit on the day. DaimlerChryslyer was down 2.7 percent to €40.80, Volkswagen fell 2.3 percent to €44.13, and BMW lost 2.2 percent to €36.46. In addition, tire-maker Continental fell by 2.7 percent to €65.84.

The energy sector also saw losses. Italian oil company Saipem fell 1.9 percent to €13.30 and Norwegian firm Statoil lost 1.6 percent to NKr158.50, while Neste Oil of Finland dropped 0.8 percent to €28.40.

The paper manufacturing sector, however, saw gains on the day even though analysts’ assessments for the sector were mixed. Stora Enso of Finland gained 2.1 percent to €11.41 and UPM-Kymmene added 1.9 percent to €16.50. Elsewhere in the sector, Norske Skogindustrier of Norway was up 1.7 percent to NKr104.50 and Holmen of Sweden gained 2.3 percent to SKr242.

In Europe on Monday, the pan-European FTSE Eurofirst 300 gained 0.2 percent to close at 1,209.81, a new 39-month closing high. In Germany, however, the Xetra Dax fell by 0.3 percent to 4,989.98.

A major factor in the Dax’s decline was the 3.3 percent fall of shares in Allianz after it announced major changes in its business structure, including its intention to buy out minority shareholders in its Italian subsidiary, RAS, for as much as €5.7 billion, and amounting to 44.6 percent of the Italian company. Shares in RAS gained 7.1 percent on the news, to €18.86.

The announcement also benefited French Allianz subsidiary AGF, which was up 1.8 percent to €72.20, on the possibility that Allianz might decide to buy out that company’s minority shareholders, as well.

Meanwhile, the automobile manufacturing sector was mostly up. The exception was BMW, which was down by 0.4 percent to €37.28 even though it said its volume growth for the year would be at the high end of its forecast.

Elsewhere in the sector, DaimlerChrysler gained 0.2 percent to €41.93, while Volkswagen gained 0.2 percent to €45.17 on the announcement that sales in the United States had gone up by 72 percent in the first ten days of September as drivers began to trade in SUVs in the face of rising gasoline prices. Fiat led the sector on the day with an advance of 2.8 percent to €7.765.

In Europe on Friday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 saw losses on the day, falling by 0.1 percent to 1,183.95, but it gained 1.7 percent on the week.

Oil and construction were higher for the week, mainly in consideration of the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Coast region of the United States.

Carmakers and reinsures saw losses for the week, however. The oil sector as a whole gained 4.2 percent to 1,438.33, with Finnish refiner Neste Oil up 13.3 percent to €27.90 on wider margins.

The construction sector was up 1.9 percent as it became clear that the storm-ravaged region will require extensive rebuilding after it is drained of water.

Reinsurers suffered as it became clear how much money in claims they would have to pay out to victims of Katrina. Munich Re and Swiss Re each estimated that their payouts could be in the neighborhood of $500 million. Munich Re lost 1.3 percent on the week to €90.02, while Swiss Re was down 1.4 percent on the day and lost 2.7 percent for the week to €79.85.

Zurich Financial SVS declined by 2.3 on the week to SFr215.60. Hannover Re reduced its profits estimate for the year by one-third.

Meanwhile, in the automobile manufacturing sector, high gasoline prices and a generally weaker dollar sent Porsche down 2 percent to €625.85, while DaimlerChrysler lost 3.2 percent to €40.60.

Crude oil prices once again were a major reason that Tokyo equities markets ended the day lower on Wednesday. The Nikkei 225 was down 0.3 percent to 12,413.60, while the Topix index fell 0.2 percent to 1,271.29.

Airlines, shippers and automobile manufacturers all fell, as did the transport equipment sector, which was down 0.8 percent as a whole. Toyota lost 1.1 percent to ¥4,500 as investors worried that the export-dependent carmaker could be harmed if demand in the US goes down due to high oil prices.

Japan Airlines, which said it was considering raising domestic fares, was down 1.3 percent to ¥311, as the air transport sector fell 0.6 percent. Shipper Mitsui OSK declined by 0.7 percent to ¥808.

In addition Japan’s second largest travel agency, Kinki Nippon Tourist, lost 3.7 percent to ¥315 on worries that travel costs will increase.

Oil refiner and shipper Cosmo Oil decreased by 4.7 percent to ¥549 on the announcement that it would issue ¥39 billion in new bonds and shares as it tries to raise money to expand its refining capacity.

The Tokyo equities markets did better on Tuesday as they gained back the ground that they lost on Monday. The Nikkei 225 gained 1.2 percent to 12,453.14 and the Topix index was up by 1.2 percent as well, to 1,273.60.

The iron and steel sector did well, gaining 3.9 percent, while the shipping sector gained 1.5 percent. Nippon Steel gained 5.2 percent to ¥321, while JFE added 4.6 percent to ¥3,200. Shipper Nippon Yusen was up 1.5 percent to ¥696.

The transport equipment sector as a whole gained 1.3 percent, and Toyota, one of Japan’s biggest exporters and the second largest automobile manufacturer in the world, was up by 2.2 percent to ¥4,550.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Eisai was up 1.2 percent to ¥4,160 after an announcement on Monday that it was ready to take its experimental drug aimed at treating sepsis to the next level of testing.

The financial sector also did well. Banking group Mizuho gained 4 percent to ¥619,000, while securities house Nomura added 2.2 percent to ¥1,521.

On the losing side, supermarket chain Eco lost 5.7 percent to ¥1,084 when it said it would probably take losses in the first half of the 2005-2006 fiscal year due to low sales, which it blamed on heavy competition.

In European equities markets on Monday, stocks rose after a full week of losses last week as the FTSE Eurofirst 300 ended the day up 0.3 percent to 1,167.43, in the absence of trading of 76 UK stocks because of the UK bank holiday.

The oil sector was mixed on the day, with Hurricane Katrina to blame. Smaller oil companies were mainly up, with Austrian company OMV up 2.7 percent to €43.70, while Saipem of Italy added 1.7 percent to €13.17.

However some larger oil companies, and especially those with operations in the Gulf of Mexico, sustained losses due to production halts and the uncertainty over whether or not their facilities would sustain damage from the storm. Royal Dutch Shell lost 0.1 percent to €26.79. Despite the storm Total, the French oil company, managed to gain 0.4 percent to €206.60.

The airlines and automobile manufacturing sectors saw losses due to rising oil prices. Lufthansa fell 0.1 percent to €10.74 and Ryanair declined by 0.6 percent to €6.55.

Tui, out of Germany, managed to overcome the news of higher oil prices to gain 1.2 percent to €19.28 on its announcement that it was thinking about raising fuel surcharges this winter.

In the auto sector Volkswagen was one of the few stocks to avoid losses, avoiding movement at all to stay at €42.91. Elsewhere, Renault lost 0.6 percent to €71.55, while Peugeot and Porsche each fell by 0.2 percent, to €50.60 and €637.63 respectively.

Insurers also had a bad day as losses due to Hurricane Katrina were being projected to possibly rise as high as $25 billion if it hit major population centers.

Primary insurers did badly enough, with Zurich Financial falling as far as SFr215.20 before ending the day up by only 0.1 percent to SFr220.70 and ING losing 0.3 percent to €23.18. Reinsurers did even worse. Swiss Re fell 0.4 percent to SFr81.65, Munich Re lost 0.5 percent to €90.73, and Hannover Re declined by 0.8 percent to €29.70.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 saw five straight days of losses during the week, and ended the day Friday down by 2.5 percent from its starting point on Monday.

The oil sector saw mostly negative results despite a rise of 1 percent in crude oil prices for the week.

The exception was OMV, listed in Vienna, which gained 9.6 percent on the week to €42.63 to rate as the biggest advance during the week on the Eurofirst.

This rise came on an unexpectedly healthy rise in profits in the second quarter, brought about by good refining margins and a Romanian acquisition.

Elsewhere in the sector, the results were not so good. Eni dropped 2.9 percent to €23.22, while Repsol YPF lost 2.8 percent to €23.17 and France’s Total declined by 2.2 percent to €205.70.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, while Fiat lost 3.9 percent on Friday to end the week at €7.08, it still managed to post a gain of 0.7 percent for the week.

Most of the week’s gains for the carmaker came from heavy sales ahead of a loan conversion that could leave the banks that extended the loans owning more of the company than is held by the company’s founding family.

It was rumored that most of that buying had been done by the family’s holding company to limit how much the stock will be diluted by the conversion.

Reinsurer Swiss Re gained 2.8 percent on Friday, the best performance of the day, to SFr82, and notched a 1.9 percent gain on the week.

The New York equities markets closed up on the day Thursday, but the gains they made were nearly cancelled out when oil prices rose once again during the day.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2 percent to 10,450.63, the Nasdaq composite was up 0.3 percent to 2,134.37, and the S&P 500 added 0.2 percent to 1,212.40.

The biggest gain of the day came from heating and air conditioning manufacturer York International, which gained 36 percent to $56.79 after auto parts supplier Johnson Controls offered a takeover bid. Other companies in the sector also rose.

Lennox International added 5.8 percent on the day to $24.48, while American Standard rose by 2.9 percent to $44.88. Elsewhere, Six Flags gained 11 percent to $7.26 after it said it would seek outside buyers in an effort to turn back an effort by one of its investors to take over the company.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, Ford and General Motors both fell after Moody’s cut their debt ratings to junk status after the close of trade on Wednesday. Ford dropped 1 percent to $9.82, while GM lost 0.5 percent to $34.09.

Chain retailers Lowe’s and Best Buy did well on the day. Home improvement company Lowe’s was up 2.1 percent to $64.19, while home electronics retailer Best Buy added 2.9 percent to $46.75.

The results of high oil prices ran the results on European equities markets on Thursday, even though crude oil prices retreated some from record high prices as the day progressed.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 0.7 percent to 1,172.57, its lowest close in three weeks.

Oil stocks were up early but gave up their gains later in the day, and shares in companies highly dependent on oil and oil products were down on the prospect of having to pay higher prices for those products.

In the oil sector, Total lost 1 percent to €207.30, while Repsol fell by 1.4 percent to €23.52 and Eni declined by 1.5 percent to €23.49.

Oil service group Saipem, however, gained 1.8 percent to €13.14 on an upgraded rating to “buy” from “neutral” from UBS.

Among oil-dependent companies, chemical group BASF lost 1.2 percent to €57.28.

In the automobile sector, Renault dropped 1.8 percent to €72.30, while Volkswagen was down 1.5 percent to €43.29.

The airlines were down as well, with Lufthansa losing 0.8 percent to €10.89 and Air France-KLM closing down 2.8 percent at €13.25.

Technology were also down on worries that higher energy costs would mean less money to spend elsewhere. Infineon lost 0.6 percent to €7.90, while STMicroelectronics was down 0.9 percent to €13.55 and ASML dropped 1.6 percent to €13.69.

Ericsson fell 2.3 percent to SKr25.60, and Nokia was down 1 percent to €12.67.

Volumes were light on European equities markets on Tuesday as many investors took summer holidays and as the FTSE Eurofirst 300 lost 0.6 percent to 1,186.73.

The pharmaceuticals sector was still feeling the fallout from last Friday’s jury verdict against Merck in the first Vioxx case to reach the US courts. Novo Nordisk lost 1.5 percent to DKr323.50 after a US rival reported success in clinical trials of a diabetes drug, which caused concerns that Novo Nordisk’s development of a similar product might be undermined.

Elsewhere in the sector, Sanofi-Aventis lost 1.6 percent to €70.65 and Novartis and Roche each declined by 1.1 percent. Novartis ended the session at SFr61.65, while Roche settled at SFr173.60.

Oil prices caused declines in both the oil sector and in sectors which use a great deal of oil products. In the oil sector, Eni dropped 2.1 percent to €23.47, Total lost 1.2 percent to €208.30, and Repsol YPF declined by
1 percent to €23.86.

Most companies in the automobile manufacturing sector were also down on the day. The exception was Fiat, which closed up 2.8 percent to €7.446 on the heels of Monday’s 3.3 percent gain. Elsewhere in the sector, Peugeot lost 1.2 percent to €51.80, DaimlerChrysler fell 1.3 percent to €42.14, Porsche closed 1.9 percent lower at €643.22.

In the airlines sector, Air France lost 2.4 percent to €13.62 and Lufthansa closed even at €11.09 after recovering from a decline earlier in the day.

Good performance early in the US equities market helped European equities
markets to gains on Monday. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.05 percent to
1,194.42.

In the pharmaceutical sector, GlaxoSmithKline’s fall of 0.8 percent in London sent European drug makers down as well. Sanofi-Aventis lost 1.2 percent to €71.80, and Novartis dropped 1 percent to SFr62.35, while Schering fell 0.6 percent to €52.61. The fall of GSK, in turn, came partly on a jury decision against Merck involving the death of a patient using Vioxx.

The automobile manufacturing sector was up, led by Fiat, which gained 3.3 percent to €7.2450. The company has a €3 billion loan which comes due in September, and if it cannot pay cash, the banks which extended the loan must convert it into equity, which would leave them owning about one-fourth of the company, more than is owned by Fiat’s founding family. Elsewhere in the sector, Volkswagen gained 1.9 percent to €44.85, and DaimlerChrysler and Peugot each added 1.2 percent, with shares in DaimlerChrysler sitting at €42.69 and shares in Peugot at €52.40.

Meanwhile, Anglo-Dutch consumer-goods company Unilever gained 1.5 percent to €57.25 on speculation that some of its frozen foods brands might be sold.

In Tokyo on Friday, equities markets were down on profit taking even while they remained close to four-year highs and with no real evidence that they had been affected much by global economic worries. The Nikkei 225 lost 0.1 percent on the day to 12,291.73 and the Topix index was down by 0.2 percent to 1,250.50.

The automobile manufacturing sector fell by 0.3 percent as a whole, with Toyota down 0.7 percent to ¥4,360.

The steel sector, up most of the week on strong worldwide demand, was down by 0.9 percent. Nippon Steel lost 1.3 percent to ¥305.

Retailers were down as well, by 0.6 percent as supermarket chain Ito-Yokado lost 1.3 percent, to ¥3,930.

Machinery sectors were down, as well, with the precision machinery sector down by 1.4 percent and the general machinery sector falling even father, by 0.6 percent.

There were gainers on the day, as two vehicle-related companies anticipated technological advances. Mitsubishi Motors gained 3.5 percent to ¥147 on reports that it will launch its first electric vehicles in 2008 rather than in 2010 even though the company denied those stories.

Fuji Heavy Industries, which makes Subaru automobiles, announced that it would debut a vehicle using a lithium battery in the 2007-2008 model year. The announcement sent shares in the company up 3.7 percent to ¥500.

In Tokyo on Monday, the Topix index had its highest close since July 2001 as it gained 0.3 percent to 1,248.77. Meanwhile, the Nikkei 225 lost 0.1 percent on the day to a closing level of 12,256.55.

Still, the Nikkei was not far from the four-year high it reached last week. Commodity producers were up due to higher market prices and strong demand.

Nippon Steel was up after it said it would spend money on new equipment made necessary by growing demand, gaining 2.7 percent to ¥301. Tokyo Steel Manufacturing was also up, by 1 percent to ¥1,476. Rising copper prices led to gains by companies with interests in copper.

Mitsubishi Materials, for example, gained 3.1 percent to ¥329. Oil prices, up to record highs at the end of last week, helped the oil sector to gains. AOC holdings was up 1.2 percent to ¥2,020. Nippon Mining, with interests in both oil and copper, also saw a gain, adding 2.5 percent to ¥740.

The banking and securities sector continued to do well on new optimizing about growth in the Japanese economy. Brokerage firm Nomura was up 0.7 percent to ¥1,486.

Automobile manufacturers, however, were down on the day after Friday’s news of dips in US consumer sentiment. Honda lost 2.1 percent to ¥5,640 and Toyota declined by 1.1 percent to ¥4,330.

European equities markets ended the day relatively even as the FTSE Eurofirst 300 closed at 1,192.46 as a number of markets were closed for the observance of Assumption Day.

In the banking sector, Commerzbank lost some of its recent gains on the news that its chief executive has come under investigation in an ongoing money laundering inquiry involving the bank, losing 0.8 percent to €20.93.

The automobile manufacturing sector was down on the day as well, as BMW fell by 0.9 percent to €36.42 and Peugeot lost 0.8 percent to €51.90. Michelin was down 0.9 percent to €51.40. In the chemicals sector, Bayer lost 1 percent to €29.36 and specialty chemicals group Clariant declined by 0.8 percent to SFr18.70.

The largest pharmaceuticals wholesaler in Europe, Celesio, lost 2.9 percent to €69.01 on profit-taking after recent gains. In mergers and acquisitions, Philips Electronics was up 0.6 percent to €21.64 after it announced that it would pay around €765 million to buy a 47 percent stake in LED company Lumileds from Agilent Technologies. Philips also announced that it would buy back around €1.5 billion of its own shares in the next year.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 ended the week at nearly the same level as it began, at 1,174.47, although in the middle of the week it managed to hit a three-year high.

Banks had a mixed week. Allied Irish Bank reported a first-half profit of 22 percent on more loans, leading ABN Amro to upgrade the bank from “hold” to “add” and to raise its earnings estimates and price targets.

This did not prevent Allied Irish from losing 1.1 percent on the week to €17.65 on profit taking. Société Générale, which had gained 10 percent on the year before it reported second-quarter results on Thursday, saw a 2.1 percent loss to *88.35, again on profit-taking.

BNP Paribas saw its shares fall in value on Wednesday after its quarterly report presented results that were above predictions, but it managed gains at the end of the week to close 1.3 percent higher at €60.40. Commerzbank also had a good week, gaining 7 percent on the week to €19.72 even though it reported a decline of 27 percent in net profits in the second quarter.

One of the biggest losers of the week came from the automobile manufacturing sector, as BMW declined by 4.9 percent over the week to €36.85 on a 15.5 percent decrease in pre-tax profits in the second quarter.

The Tokyo equities markets were down again on Friday as investors worried about the consequences of a defeat for the prime minister’s plan to privatize the post office.

If the upper house of parliament does not approve the legislation, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has promised to dissolve parliament and call elections.

The Nikkei 225 was down 0.98 percent to 11,766.48, while the Topix index lost 1.24 percent to 1,189.19. All 33 sectors of the Tokyo Stock Exchange were down on the day.

Banks were lower, with Mizuho Financial Group down 1.2 percent to ¥502,000, MTFG lost 1.2 percent to ¥943,000, and UFJ dropped 0.9 percent to ¥580,000.

Besides the uncertainty over the privatization vote, MTFG and UFJ were also affected by a report that that the two banks are delaying plans for a merger, a rumor that both banks denied.

Automobile manufacturers also saw major losses as Honda, Nissan, and Toyota each lost 1.9 percent of the value of their shares. Honda stood at ¥5,700, Nissan declined to ¥1,145, and Toyota fell to ¥4,170.

Not all individual shares were down, however. Condominium developer Haseko gained 9.3 percent to ¥258 on the announcement that it will buy back ¥142.8 billion in preferred shares from three banks.

Fuji Television gained 1.4 percent to ¥221,000 when it upped its profit estimate for the full year by 7 percent due to TV shopping and advertising revenues that are higher than expected. Fuji is Japan’s biggest private broadcaster.

In the eurozone on Thursday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 lost 0.7 percent to 1,178.96 on profit-taking and a number of companies that did not meet quarterly expectations.

In the banking sector, the Royal Bank of Scotland’s unfavorable earnings report had an effect on the rest of the sector. The Bank of Ireland was down 2.6 percent to €13.39 after it announced that it will fund a Canadian rail project. Fortis lost 1.4 percent to €24.14.

Allied Irish Bank declined by 0.8 percent to €17.65. However, Germany’s Commerzbank gained 2.6 percent to €19.83 on good performance Wednesday and the expectation of a return to go to investors.

In the oil sector, Total, the world’s fourth largest oil company, reported a 33 percent increase in net profits in the second quarter. However, its quarterly profit of €2.91 billion was only even with predictions. In consequence, shares of Total dropped 1.3 percent to €208.80.

Neste Oil was up 0.4 percent to €23.80 after hitting an all-time high of €25.05 earlier in the day. This gain followed the announcement of a 17 percent rise in operating profits in the second quarter, above forecasts.

Austria’s OMV lost 0.7 percent to €39.20, Italy’s ENI fell 1.3 percent to €25.53, and Norway’s Norsk Hydro lost 1.6 percent to NKr627.00.

In the automotive sector, BMW fell 2.2 percent to €37.13 on less-than-expected first half earnings. DaimlerChrysler was down 2.4 percent to €40.34 in spite of an increase in July sales, up 2.2 percent to 100,200 units on the strong performance of its Mercedes Benz division.

Even with that result, however, group sales were down 1.3 percent in the year through July. Elsewhere in the sector, Porsche lost 2.6 percent to €638.03, Fiat fell 2.8 percent to €6.9040, and Renault declined by 1.7 percent to €76.25.

In Tokyo on Wednesdsay, equities markets closed higher again on another group of positive quarterly reports.

The Nikkei 225 closed 0.35 percent higher at 11,981.80, its highest closing level in 15 months, after having peaked briefly above the 12,000 level for the first time in over a year. The Topix index ended the day up 0.2 percent at 1,212.02.

Gains were limited, however, by continuing uncertainty over what will happen if the upper house of parliament does not approve privatization of the post office in a vote schedule for Friday.

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has threatened to call elections if the legislation, which he backs, is not approved.

Among those companies issuing quarterly reports was car and motorcycle manufacturer Suzuki, which gained 3.5 percent to ¥1,874 after it reported a higher than expected 4.6 percent gain in quarterly operating profits.

Amano, which makes time recording equipment, saw the value of its shares soar by 12.6 percent to ¥1,614 after it said that it more than doubled its operating profit in the most recent quarter. In response, Amano revised its forecast for the half-year ending in September.

Drugmaker Astellas added 5.3 percent to close at ¥3,790 on a 13 percent rise in quarterly profits due to strong sales.

In New York on Tuesday, equities markets were up, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.6 percent to 10,683.74, while the Nasdaq composite gained over 1 percent to 2,218.15 and the S&P 500 added 1,244.08.

Analysts warned investors not to get too excited about recent gains, however, because statistically speaking August and September are the worst performing months for US markets.

On the announcement that CNOOC had dropped its bid for Unocal due to political factors, shares in Chevron gained 1.9 percent to $59.56 and Unocal was up 0.3 percent to $64.53.

Among automobile manufacturers, Ford and DaimlerChrysler were up and General Motors was down after all three companies showed improvements in sales in the quarter on large discounts to car buyers. Ford gained 0.3 percent to $10.88, DaimlerChrysler was up 2.8 percent to $50.75, while GM lost 0.9 percent to $36.53.

The media sector was up as a whole by 0.8 percent on the day. Cable tv and internet provider Comcast reported that its profits were up 62 percent in the quarter even though cable and internet subscriptions were down. Shares in Comcast were up 1.3 percent on the day to $31.00. Time Warner and Viacom will report their quarterly earnings later in the week.

The FTSE Eurofirst hit a 38-month high on Tuesday when it closed up 0.8 percent to 1,189.43, its gains mostly on reactions by investors to positive quarterly earnings reports.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, BMW was up 1.7 percent to *39.62 ahead of its quarterly report. Volkswagen gained 0.5 percent to *44.23 and DaimlerChrysler advanced by 2.7 percent to *41.52.

In automotive-related stocks, tire maker Continental was up 3 percent to *67.22 on higher than forecast second-quarter earnings and on having kept up with full-year predictions. French rival Michelin was up 2.3 percent to *52.45.

Chipmakers were up on a report out of the United States that showed chip sales worldwide up more than expected in the first half of the year. Infineon gained 2.9 percent to *8.28, ASML added 1 percent to *14.58, and STMicroelectronics was up by 2.3 percent to *14.43.

In the retail sector, German retailer Metro gained 1.1 percent to *42.63 even though it did not meet quarterly expectations. It was still upgraded to “outperform” by WestLB, which raised its target price to *46.50 per share, up from *41.

Carrefour, Europe’s largest retailer, was up 2.6 percent to *39.77 on rumors that US retailer Wal-Mart could be getting ready to mount a takeover bid.

In European equities markets, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 closed at 1,179.31 on Friday, down just slightly on the day but up by 1.2 percent for the week.

Automobile manufacturer DaimlerChrysler was one of the big winners of the week, based on a positive quarterly report and the resignation of its unpopular chief executive. The company’s shares were up 12 percent on the week to €40.04.

Elsewhere in the automobile manufacturing sector, Fiat announced on Thursday that its profits had nearly doubled in the second quarter, gaining 2.9 percent on the week to close on Friday at €7.01.

Volkswagen also had a better-than-anticipated quarterly result, sending its shares up 2.2 percent on the day and up 6.2 percent for the week, for a closing quote on Friday of €44.82.

Daimler’s 9 percent rise on Thursday spurred Deutsche Bank to sell its 3.5 percent share of the company on the same day it released its own quarterly report and announced a huge share buyback. Deutsche Bank ended the week at €71.02, up 0.6 percent.

Less successful on the week were the chipmakers. STMicroelectronics released their second-quarter report on Wednesday, showing net profits down by 82 percent because of slow sales and restructuring costs and losing 3.3 percent for the week to €14.22.

Infineon reported disappointing results as well this week, sending shares down 3.8 percent to €8.11 and earning downgrades from several ratings agencies.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 gained 0.5 percent to 1,179.08 on Thursday. Daimler Chrysler was up, initially gaining on speculation that its chief executive, Jurgen Schremmp would step down.

Confirmation of those rumors, coupled with better-than-expected profits, had shares up 9 percent at the close to €39.59.

Shares had traded as high as €40.40 earlier in the day, their highest level in almost three years. Fiat was up 4.1 percent to €7.165 on a much better than anticipated quarterly report, in which the Italian carmaker said it had cut losses to €88 million, down from €238 in the same quarter last year.

Alcatel, the telecommunications equipment maker, gained 4.3 percent to €10.09 on the report that its second quarter profits had more than doubled to €196 million and that it was getting ready to pay its first dividend. Despite all of this, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein did not remove its recommendation to sell shares in Fiat.

Syngenta, the Swiss chemicals group that is second in the world in agricultural chemicals, gained 5.4 percent to SF4135.20 after it reported a net profit of 17 percent in the first half of the year. It up most of that gain to demand for its new crop protection products.

The Nikkei 225 gained 0.3 percent to 11,835.08 and the Topix index was up 0.8 percent to 1,198.97 on Wednesday in Tokyo, reaching 15-week highs due to the yen once again weakening in relation to the dollar.

Carmakers did exceptionally well. Toyota gained 1.4 percent to ¥4,230, Nissan was up 1.4 percent to ¥1,165, and Honda gained 2 percent to ¥5,720. Some analysts are saying that revaluation will help the Japanese automobile manufacturing sector because the revaluation will increase purchasing power in China and so boost demand there for Japanese cars.

In the pharmaceuticals sector Tsumura, which makes Chinese medicines, gained 2.2 percent to ¥2,090 when Credit Suisse First Boston rated it at “outperform”, citing the growing Japanese demand for Chinese herbal medicines. Chugai Pharmaceutical, the Japanese component of Roche, advanced by 3.1 percent to ¥1,845 on its announcement that the health ministry had requested that it proceed more quickly on filing for an approval of Avastin, its colon cancer drug. Demand for the drug is very high.

The equity markets in Tokyo were down slightly on Tuesday as investors were uncertain of the outcome of six-party talks with North Korea and as there were few new quarterly reports to respond to.

The Nikkei 225 was down 0.21 percent to 11,737.96, while the Topix index fell 0.11 percent to 1,189.01 as gains in the automobile and microchips sectors were overcome by declines in the financial sector and in other parts of the technology sector.

Strong quarterly earnings by US company Texas Instruments sent shares in the semiconductor sector up as Goldman Sachs hiked its ratings for major chipmakers.

Advantest, which is the largest manufacturer of semiconductor testing devices in the world, was up 2.9 percent to ¥8,490, while the world’s second largest manufacturer of chip-making equipment, Tokyo Electron, gained 2.6 percent to ¥5,950.

In the automobile sector, Toyota was up 0.2 percent to ¥4,170 and Honda gained 0.2 percent as well, to ¥5,610 as the chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said that the industry would realize benefits from China’s revaluation of the renminbi.

In the technology sector, Canon was down 0.8 percent to ¥5,980, Sony fell 0.5 percent to ¥3,820, and Toshiba declined by 0.2 percent to ¥437. Sony’s shares especially were hit by the results of a survey of brand perception that had it falling from first to fourth place since last year. It was replaced by Microsoft.

Meanwhile, Oki Electric, a telecommunications equipment maker, was off by 4.5 percent to ¥359 on the news that it would post an operating loss of ¥3 billion in the six-month period ending in September. Shares in securities firms were anywhere from 0.3 percent to 1 percent lower on the day.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 gained 0.5 percent on Monday to 1,170.62, chiefly on gains in the oil and telecommunications sectors.

The oil sector saw gains after losses had been seen due to concerns that recent terrorist activity, on top of high oil prices, might decrease demand.

Repsol gained 1.5 percent to €23.15, Neste Oil was up 0.6 percent to €21.80, Eni added 2.1 percent to €23.36, Total gained 2.2 percent to €208.50, and Statoil advanced by 2.4 percent to NKr141.00.

In the telecommunications sector, Telenor was up 1.4 percent to NKr55.25 after JPMorgan raised its rating to “overweight”.

Elsewhere in the sector, France Telecom gained 0.3 percent to €23.90 and Telecom Italia added 0.9 percent to €2.618.

In the motor vehicle manufacturing sector, Volvo lost 8.1 percent to SKr325.50 even though its pre-tax profit in the second quarter was its highest ever and it raised its outlook for market growth in North America to 20 percent as demand was down in the European market. Fiat, however, gained 4.3 percent to €7.11.

The banking sector was generally lower. German bank Commerzbank lost 1.2 percent to €18.44 after the news that it is cooperating with an investigation into money-laundering linked to a Russian telecommunications company.

In Italy, meanwhile, Mediobanca lost 2.4 percent to €16.164, while Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena lost 3.2 percent to €*3.3090.

In Tokyo on Friday, equities markets saw declines as the yen appreciated sharply in relation to the US dollar in consequence of the revaluation of China’s currency on Thursday.

Share prices were especially hard hit among export-dependent companies. The Nikkei 225 fell 0.8 percent to 11,695.05 and the Topix lost 0.7 percent to close at 1,186.76.

The automobile manufacturing sector was hard-hit, as Toyota lost 0.9 percent to ¥4,190 and Nissan was down 1.5 percent to ¥1,145.

Additionally Sony, one of Japan’s largest exporters, lost 1.5 percent to ¥3,840.

Another factor in Sony’s decline is worry over game development for the PlayStation 3.

The troubles within export companies did nothing to help companies oriented toward the domestic market, as the retail sector declined by 0.9 percent on the day and the banking and services sectors each lost 0.5 percent.

One drag on the retail sector was supermarket chain Seiyu, which had announced earlier that it will have a net loss this year. Seiyu lost 4.3 percent to ¥202 on Friday.

In Europe on Monday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 lost 0.3 percent to 1,160.62. The electronics sector had a bad day as Infineon was down 1 percent to €8.33 on news that one of its executives had been forced to resign amid accusations of corruption.

STMicroelectronics fell 1.6 percent to *14.53. Dutch firm Philips declined by 2.6 percent to €22.07 on a report that its second quarter profits were down by over one-half.

The automobile sector saw gains, however, as Fiat gained 1.1 percent to €6.50, while Porsche advanced by 2.4 percent to €673.50 as it announced its best first-half results ever. The Greek Athens General Index had a much better day, rising 1.7 percent to 3,171.55.

Gaming group Opap was up 4.8 percent to €22.50 after the government announced a sale of 52.45 million shares, 16.44 percent of the company, at €24.14 each.

Meanwhile, telecommunications company OTE gained 2.5 percent to €16.26 on news that the company, which is mostly owned by the Greek government, is getting ready to sell 13 percent of its shares, 9 percent of which will be publicly offered, with the remaining 4 percent being placed with OTE’s pension fund.

In Europe on Thursday, the Eurofirst 300 reached yet another 3-year high at the close, led by the technology, steel, and automobile sectors.

The pan-European index closed 0.51 percent higher at 1.165.43, having reached 1,170.34 earlier in the day.

Meanwhile in France, the CAC-40, open despite the Bastille Day holiday reached a 38-month closing high, finishing the day up 0.63 percent at 4,370.88.

Steelmakers, which suffered from a series of downgrades on Tuesday, recovered on Thursday as the sector hoped that the worst was over.

Arcelor gained 2.4 percent to €16.86, and ThyssenKrupp advanced 2.8 percent to €14.71.

Technology stocks gained on better-than-expected quarterly earnings reports from American companies AMD and Apple Computer.

Infineon was up 3.6 percent to €8.39, Phillips Electronics gained 1.4 percent to €22.68, and ASML advanced 1.7 percent to €14.24.

STMicroelectronics was up 2.9 percent to €14.80, also benefiting from rumors of joint venture talks with South Korea’s Hynix Semiconductor.

In the auto sector, Daimler Chrysler gained 1.7 percent to €34.64, while Renault was up 2 percent to €75.55.

In Tokyo, equities markets hit a four-month high, as export-dependent stocks did well once again on good employment news from the United States. Sony rose 1.3 percent to ¥3,940.

Office equipment maker Canon gained 0.5 percent to ¥5,920. Carmakers were also up, as Honda gained 0.6 percent to ¥5,520, Toyota was up 0.7 percent to ¥4,130, and Nissan added 0.5 percent to ¥1,124.

Nippon Television Network was up 3.5 percent to Y15,940 on a report that it will begin paid internet broadcasting in October.