Frankfurt DAX: 2857.24 (+65.28)

German shares extended morning gains of almost 2.5 per cent in afternoon electronic dealing as sentiment was buoyed by the firmer Dow and stronger dollar, which makes German exports more attractive. The IBIS DAX index on post bourse electronic trading closed at 2,866.04.

Paris CAC-40: 2255.84 (+15.12)

In Paris, shares made early sharp gains on the back of Wall Street. Though Paris was nearly per cent up, it had still only recouped part of Friday's 2.26 per cent slide "The recovery is limited, which shows that the market remains fragile," said a dealer.

Milan Mibtel: 10374 (+46)

Italian shares slipped from their earlier highs but ended in positive territory in thin trading, with the market deriving little support from Wall Street's strong opening.

Fiat closed down sharply in response to weekend comment from Prime Minister Mr Romano Prodi which was seen as damaging the car industry's hopes for incentives to boost flagging car sales.