Brushing aside the upward nudge for European interest rates and the prospect of tighter money, Frankfurt rallied modestly as selected technology leaders reclaimed lost ground.
Business software leader SAP stayed out of favour, losing a further €8.29 at €257.71 for a two-day decline of 11 per cent. But the rest of the sector was in cheerier form. Siemens added €7.15 at €146.15 and Infineon €1.32 at €56.40. Deutsche Telekom hardened 6 cents at €40.20.
There was also further support from old economy leaders. In chemicals, Schering, supported lately by takeover rumours, fell €3.73 or 5 per cent to 71 as investors locked in profits, but BASF gained 82 cents at €42.52 and Bayer added 67 cents at €44.80.
Volkswagen continued to bask in the warm glow that the motor giant engendered at the Paris Motor Show, gaining €1.05 at €56.40. Retailer Metro and Karstadt Quelle put on €1.01 at €48.29 and €1.51 at €38.26 respectively.
Utility RWE rose €2.24 to €43.69 following strong six-month results from French sector rival Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux. Preussag improved 62 cents to €34.30 after the leisure leader postponed a share offering.
Paris saw gains across the board, although earlier rises were trimmed after the ECB interest rate rise and a limp start on US markets.
Most TMT stocks managed to shrug off the Dell Computer sales warning. STMicroelectronics added 1.5 per cent to €55.95 while Internet service provider Wanadoo leapt 9.6 per cent to €16, recouping most of Wednesday's loss, as the company prepared to release its first-half results. It showed net attributable loss widening to 67 million.
Telecom equipment maker Alcatel rose 4.7 per cent to €76.80 following the announcement of a tracking stock in its optronics business, the first such stock in Europe.
Technology plays were not the only risers. Food group Danone added 6.25 per cent to €153 after a broker upgrade from ABN Amro and Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux added 5 per cent to €177.80 after reporting strong first-half results and good prospects.
The retail sector made gains as the French retail federation reported that hypermarket sales rose 5.1 per cent in September. Carrefour closed 2.5 per cent higher at €82.60 and Casino gained 2.4 per cent to €104.20.
Amsterdam edged higher on a rally for tech stocks and the AEX index ended up 2.87 at 671.80.
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