European bourses ended the week more or less where they started after a final session subdued by interest rate uncertainty.
The FTSE Eurobloc 100 index ended 0.3 per cent lower at 1,134.30. The FTSE Eurotop 100 index shed 0.5 per cent at 3,113.72 and the broader FTSE Eurotop 300 0.3 per cent at 1,357.30.
Frankfurt finished a volatile session modestly higher with the Xetra Dax index up 0.68 at 5,619.94, a net 19 points down on the close last Friday.
Mannesmann pushed ahead strongly as Omnitel, the Italian mobile phone operations shortly to be acquired, announced surging earnings and a near 10 per cent expansion in client base from the end of March to mid June. The shares jumped €4.55 to €156.50.
Utility Veba added 19 cents to €58.64 on the announcement that it was to take a big stake in a Dutch electricity generator. Software leader SAP shed €3 to €399.50 ahead of next Tuesday's second-quarter results statement.
Paris fell on profit-taking after Thursday's sharp gain. The CAC-40 index ended 8.88 or 0.2 per cent lower at 4,656.79.
Credit Commercial de France rose €3.60 or 3.4 per cent to €110.50 after it was revealed ING of the Netherlands had raised its stake again. The news sparked speculation about a takeover although ING said it had no plans to make a bid.
France Telecom shed €2.20 or 3 per cent to finish at €71.20 after Standard and Poor's, the rating agency, placed it on "CreditWatch with negative implications".
Amsterdam succumbed to renewed interest rate uncertainty, denting financials and sending the AEX index down 5.71 at 588.63.
Among financials, ABN Amro shed 10 cents at €22.55 and Aegon fell 60 cents to €72.05. ING, which upped its stake in French bank CCF to 16.6 per cent, lost 85 cents at €52.40.
Philips initially shot up to €109.75 as investors tracked the overnight strength of US tech stocks. The shares ended 45 cents easier at €105.95.
Zurich lost 35.3 at 7,077.2 on the SMI index. In a subdued drugs sector, Clariant added SFr17 to SFr715 on an interim trading statement forecasting stable full-year sales. Nestle held steady at SFr2,860 ahead of next week's six-months sales report.
Madrid ended flat despite strong performances by several blue-chip stocks. The general index ended 0.95 or 0.1 per cent down at 902.48.
Telefonica rose 74 cents or 1.6 per cent to €48.23, building on the gain of almost 4 per cent on Thursday. The group denied a report that it was in talks about a link-up with Deutsche Telecom.
