Frankfurt touches best ever level

Frankfurt Dax: 6019.48 (+37.06)

Frankfurt's Xetra DAX index rose 0.37 per cent to 6023.31 after peaking at its best ever level of 6054.78 earlier. Degussa led the advance with a 5.5 per cent rise to 115.55 marks. Dealers said there was no specific news on the chemicals group, but it was possible analysts had upgraded their ratings on the stock.

Paris: closed

Though the Paris stock market was closed for a two-day holiday, futures traded sharply higher. The CAC-40 July future rose 37.5 to 4285 amid a view France's soccer World Cup victory on Sunday night would help a recovery in consumer spending.

Milan MIBTEL: 24780 (+141)

A muted session in Milan closed just off the day's high, as the market waited for further direction from New York. Fiat was up more than 2.5 per cent on continued speculation it might find a partner for the European car market. Generali was up near 2.5 per cent on overseas buying interest, while Olivetti was up 3.8 per cent on US buying interest.