European markets saw declines on Wednesday.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 0.56 percent lower to 1,549.26.

In Frankfurt the Dax dropped 0.18 percent to 7,828.96 and in Paris the CAC-40 was down 0.53 percent to 5,674.67, while Madrid’s IBEX fell 1.29 percent to 15,231.3.

Banks were hurt by the report on Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER; TYO: 8675) writedowns.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) was 0.7 percent lower to €87.24, while BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) was down 1.4 percent to €73.45 and Dexia (Euronext: DEXB) dropped 1.51 percent to €21.48.

Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) fell 1.78 percent to €111.82, UBS (SWX: USBN; NYSE: UBS; TYO: 8657) was 1.8 percent lower to SFr62.65, and Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) was down 2.76 percent to €28.38.

Truck makers were mixed.

Man (FWB: EDF1) dropped 1.69 percent to €120.43, while Volvo (OMXS: VOLV A, VOLV B; NAS: VOLV) added 5.2 percent to kr122 on a higher production estimate.

Carmakers were higher, with Volkswagen (FWB: VOW; OTC: VLKAY) adding 1.66 percent to €172.62 after a change in the law made it more likely that Porsche (FWB: POR3) will make a full-on takeover bid.

Peugeot (Euronext: UG; OTC: PEUGY) was up 0.11 percent to €56.54.

Utilities were up in Frankfurt.

Eon (FWB: EOA; NYSE: EON; LSE: EON) was 1.34 percent higher to €133.03, while RWE (FWB: RWE) gained 1.62 percent to €94.64.

European markets were higher on Thursday’ session.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.6 percent to 1,599.12.

The Paris CAC-40 was 0.42 percent higher to 5,862.83, while the Dax gained 0.59 percent to 8,033.69 and the IBEX jumped 1.59 percent to 15,100.

Volkswagen (FWB: VOW; OTC: VLKAY) was the biggest gainer on the Dax, where it added 4.75 percent to €183.60.

Over on the CAC-40, France Telecom (Euronext: FTE; NYSE: FTE) was up 4.24 percent to €24.12 after Telefonica (IBEX-35: TEF) said its divedend would go up.

The steel sector saw gains, with Mittal Steel (Euronext: MT; NYSE: MT) adding 1.64 percent to €56.48 and ThyssenKrupp (FWB: TKA; LSE: THK) gaining 2.54 percent to €45.18.

Steel products manufacturer Vallourec (Euronext: VK) was 2.64 percent higher to €220.38.

Airlines were mixed on the session.

Lufthansa (FWB: LHA) added 2.36 percent to €21.69, but Air France (Euronext: AF; NYSE: AKH) was down 1.66 percent to €28.39.

Banks were lower.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) dropped 0.66 percent to €93.20, while Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) was down 0.82 percent to €27.70 and Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) was 0.95 percent lower to €123.70.

L’Oreal (Euronext: OR) had the worst day on the CAC-40, dropping 1.75 percent to €90.71 after it lost a legal action intended to prevent another firm from selling a perfume similar to one of its products.

Meanwhile, software maker SAP (FWB: SAP; NYSE: SAP) was the worst performer on the Dax, falling 1.99 percent to €38.79.

European markets were mixed on Wednesday, with most seeing slight gains.

However, the Paris CAC-40 fell a bit, down 0.04 percent to 5,838.49.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.12 percent to 1,589.53, while Madrid’s IBEX was up 0.01 percent to 14,863.8 and the Dax gained 0.08 percent to 7,986.57.

Aerospace group EADS (Euronext: EAD; FWB: EAD) was 1.56 percent higher in Paris to €22.80 on the news that a Singapore airline had ordered 30 Airbus SAS A320 aircraft, with an option to purchase 20 more.

Airlines were also higher.

Lufthansa (FWB: LHA) was up 1.3 percent to €21.22 on increased passenger traffic in September after the airline added flights in several regions of the world, Air France (Euronext: AF; NYSE: AKH) gained 1.55 percent to €28.87.

Utilities and the steel sector were mixed.

EDF (Euronext: EEN) up 0.96 percent to €77.60 but Eon (FWB: EOA; LSE: EON; NYSE: EON) dropped 0.8 percent to €127.55.

Mittal Steel (Euronext: MT; NYSE: MT) added 1.42 percent to €55.57, while ThyssenKrupp (FWB: TKA; LSE: THK) was 1.19 percent lower to €44.12 on a broker recommendation that was dropped from “hold” to “sell”.

Among car and truck makers, Man (FWB: EDF1) was 1.8 percent higher to €120.76 and Volkswagen (FWB: VOW; OTC: VLKAY) gained 1.65 percent to €175.47, but Renault (Euronext: RNO) dropped 1.41 percent to €111.84.

Banks were lower.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) was 0.73 percent lower to €93.88, while Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) was down 1.27 percent to €124.89 and Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) dropped 2.1 percent to €27.93.

Most European markets were higher on the session, but Madrid’s IBEX dropped 0.04 percent to 14,783.8.

In Frankfurt the Dax added 0.11 percent to 7,955.3, while the CAC-40 gained 0.12 percent to 5,806.18 in Paris.

The Pan-European FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 0.16 percent higher to 1,570.81.

Insider trading accusations sent aerospace and defense group EADS (Eurofirst: EAD; FWB: EAD) and Lagardere (Euronext: MMB), which has interests in both media and aerospace as an investor in EADS, lower on the session.

Lagardere was the day’s worst performer on the CAC-40 as it dropped 5.42 percent to €58.45, while EADS fell 0.78 percent to €21.71.

Lagardere officials said the allegations are unfounded, while EADS had no comment.

Other decliners included the semiconductors and utilities sectors.

Among chipmakers, Infineon (FWB: IFX; NYSE: IFX) was down 0.76 percent to €11.74 while STMicroelectronics (Euronext: STM; NSYE: STM) was 1.11 percent lower to €11.61.

In the utilities sector, RWE (FWB: RWE) dropped 0.76 percent to €87.01 and EDF (Euronext: EEN) fell 0.81 percent to €73.54.

Banks saw gains on the session.

Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) was up 1.18 percent to €28.27, while Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) was 1.22 percent higher to €29.87 and Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) added 2.12 percent to €95.67.

In the airlines sector, Air France (Euronext: AF; NYSE: AKH) was up 1.46 percent to €28.41.

Car and truck makers also gained ground.

Peugeot (Euronext: UG; OTC: PEUGY) was 1.52 percent higher to €60 while Renault (Euronext: RNO) gained 1.62 percent to €109.26.

Meanwhile, truck maker Man (FWB: EDF1) turned in the best performance of the day on the Dax as it added 3.85 percent to €112.96.

Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext: ALU; NYSE: ALU; TYO: 6687) had the best day on the CAC-40, gaining 2.37 percent to €7.37.

European markets were mixed on the session.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up, but only by 0.01 percent, or one-fifth of a point, to 1,546.48.

Madrid’s IBEX added 0.32 percent to 14,497.6, but the Dax dropped 0.08 percent to 7,787.92 in Frankfurt, while the Paris CAC-40 fell 0.14 percent to 5,692.49.

Banks were lower after Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) was expected to have to write off as much as €1.7 billion (£1.2 billion; $2.4 billion) because of its exposure in the current credit mess.

Deutsche Bank was down 1.8 percent to €90.24, while Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) was the worst performer on the Dax as it dropped 4.34 percent to €28.44.

Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) was 1.35 percent lower to €118.96, while BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) fell 2.27 percent to €75.32.

In the semiconductors sector, Infineon (FWB: IFX; NYSE: IFX) was down 3 percent to €11.68.

Schneider Electric (Euronext: SCHN) was the worst performer on the CAC-40 as it fell 3.59 percent to €91.27 on a downgrade from Citigroup (NYSE: C).

Stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse (FWB: DB1) had the best day on the Dax, adding 3.67 percent to €93.80, while utility EDF (Euronext: EEN) turned in the best performance on the CAC-40 with a gain of 2.86 percent to €72.56.

The steel sector saw gains.

ThyssenKrupp (FWB: TKA; NYSE: THK) was up 0.82 percent to €44.43, while Mittal Steel (Euronext: MT; NYSE: MT) was 1.53 percent higher to €54.95 and steel products manufacturer Vallourec (Euronext: VK) gained 1.04 percent to €203.83.

Carmakers were also higher.

Renault (Euronext: RNO) was up 1.03 percent to €101.03, while BMW (FWB: BMW) added 3.64 percent to €37.03.

Equities markets in Europe were lower on the session.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 fell 0.63 percent to 1,539.89.

In Frankfurt the Dax was 0.19 percent lower to 7,735.09, while Madrid’s IBEX was down 0.47 percent to 14,427.1 and the Paris CAC-40 dropped 0.73 percent to 5,688.76.

Vinci (Euronext: DG) had the best day on the CAC-40, where the construction group added 1.12 percent to €53.19.

Also in the sector Bouygues (Euronext: EN), with interests in both construction and media, gained 0.22 percent to €60.

In the related building materials sector, however, Lafarge (Euronext: LG; NYSE: LR) dropped 2.28 percent to 109.90.

The worst performance on the CAC-40 came from the utilities sector, where EDF (Euronext: EEN) was 3.34 percent lower to €71.77, but the sector was mixed as RWE (FWB: RWE) added 0.8 percent to €86.28.

Retailer Metro (FWB: MEO) had the best day on the Dax as it gained 6.21 to €66.54.

Stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse (FWB: DB1) was up 1.96 percent to €88.47.

The worst performance on the Dax came from financial planners MLP (FWB: MLP) with a decline of 2.79 percent to €9.78.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) dropped 2.04 percent to €92.38.

Airlines and carmakers were both lower.

Air France (Euronext: AF; NYSE: AKH) was down 3.23 percent to €25.20, while Lufthansa (FWB: LHA) was 1.5 percent lower to €19.66.

Carmaker BMW (FWB: BMW) dropped 1.42 percent to €34.49 and Renault (Euronext: RNO) fell 1.63 percent to €96.80.

Banks began to recover in Europe as the markets there saw big gains.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 2.73 percent higher to 1,550.62.

Frankfurt’s Dax gained 2.32 percent to 7,750.84, while the IBEX added 3.19 percent to 14,487.8 in Madrid and the Paris CAC-40 was up 3.27 percent to 5,730.82.

Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) topped the leaders on the Dax with a gain of 5.51 percent to €28.91, while Deutsche Bank was 4.27 percent higher to €94.19.

In Paris, BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO; 8665) was up 5.14 percent to €78 and Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) jumped 6.88 percent to €121.31.

Insurers also did well.

Allianz (FWB: ALV; NYSE: AZ) gained 4.17 percent to €157.97, while AXA (Euronext: CS; NYSE: AXA) was up 5.42 percent to €30.33.

The best performance on the CAC-40, however, came from Michelin (Euronext: ML), which was 7.03 percent higher to €90.57.

The tire maker was helped by the Fed’s decision to cut interest rates in the US, which is its biggest market.

There was only one loser on the day on the CAC-40, where eyeglass lens maker Essilor International (Euronext: EF) dropped 0.16 percent to €43.19.

The worst performance on the Dax came from the health care sector as Fresenius Medical Care (FWB: FREG) fell 0.77 percent to €37.29.

European markets were higher on Tuesday after Monday’s declines.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 1.54 percent to 1,509.

The Dax was up 1.27 percent to 7,575.21 in Frankfurt, while the Paris CAC-40 gained 2.02 percent to 5,549.35 and Madrid’s IBEX was 2.52 percent higher to 14,042.

The best performance on the CAC-40 was construction group Vinci (Euronext: DG), with a gain of 4.53 percent to €50.54.

Spain’s construction sector did even better.

Sacyr Vallehermoso (IBEX-35: VAL) was up 4.9 percent to €24.09, while Actividades de Construccion y Servicios (IBEX-35: ACS) added 5.7 percent to €34.81 after a broker upgrade from “accumulate” to “buy”.

In a related sector, construction materials group Lafarge (Euronext: LG; NYSE: LR) was 3.4 percent higher to €108.33.

The steel sector saw gains.

Mittal Steel (Euronext: MT; NYSE: MT) gained 2.96 percent to €49.36, while ThyssenKrupp (FWB: TKA; LSE: THK) was up 3.62 percent to €41.46 for the best performance on the Dax.

Banks made gains.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) added 2.47 percent to €90.36, while BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) was 3.11 percent higher to €74.19 and Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) gained 3.25 percent to €27.31.

Motor vehicle manufacturers were mixed on the Dax.

Truck maker Man (FWB: EDF1) was up 3.44 percent to €103.55, but BMW (FWB: BMW) dropped 0.38 percent to €34.41.

Utilities were slightly lower on the session.

EDF (Euronext: EEN) fell 0.12 percent to €74.05, while Eon (FWB: EOA; NYSE: EON; LSE: EON) was down 0.73 percent to €125.97.

IT services group Cap Gemini (Euronext: CAP) had the worst day on the CAC-40 as it dropped 1.57 percent to €40.20, while financial planners MLP (FWB: MLP) was the worst performer on the Dax with a decline of 1.27 percent to €10.12.

European markets were lower on Monday as the subprime crisis continued to cause disturbances.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 1.32 percent to 1,487.28.

In Frankfurt, the Dax was 0.24 percent lower to 7,479.83, while Madrid’s IBEX fell 1.18 percent to 13,696.9 and the Paris CAC-40 was down 1.8 percent to 5,439.37.

There were only four gainers on the CAC-40, led by eyeglass lens and frame maker Essilor International (Euronext: EF), which gained 0.53 percent to €43.58.

Drinks group Pernod-Ricard was up 0.23 percent to €152.90.

The other two gainers were both utilities.

Suez (Euronext: SZE; NYSE: SZE) added 0.15 percent to €38.90 and EDF (Euronext: EEN) was 0.46 percent higher to €74.14.

Utilities also saw gains on the Dax, where Eon (FWB: EOA; LSE: EON; NYSE: EON) gained 0.72 percent to €127.11 and RWE (FWB: RWE) was up 1.5 percent to €83.68.

The best performer on the Dax was stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse, which added 2.73 percent to €82.47.

Big decliners included, in Paris, Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext: ALU; NYSE: ALU; TYO: 6687) with a drop of 5.23 percent to €6.16 and financial planner MLP (FWB: MLP), which fell 3.66 percent to €10.37.

Others seeing declines included Deutsche Post (FWB: DPW; LSE: DPO) with a decline of 1.33 percent to €20.84.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) dropped 2.05 percent to 88.22.

Schneider Electric (Euronext: SCHN) was 5.02 percent lower to €87.83, while STMicroelectronics (Euronext: STM; NYSE: STM) fell 3.08 percent to €11.66.

European markets were higher on Tuesday.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.62 percent to 1,548.76.

The IBEX was 0.3 percent higher to 14,590.1 in Madrid, while the Paris CAC-40 gained 0.38 percent to 5,672.72 and Frankfurt’s Dax was up 0.96 percent to 7,721.77.

Property investment and management group Unibail (Euronext: UL) had the best day on the CAC-40, adding 4.3 percent to €185.40.

Meanwhile, chemicals group Altana (FWB: ALT; NYSE: AAA) was the best performer on the Dax with a gain of 3.02 percent to €17.43.

Banks saw gains.

BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) was 1.2 percent higher to €78.30, while Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) gained 2.8 percent to €30.94.

Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) was up 1.21 percent to €121.97, Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE DB) added 2.92 percent to €94.16, and Dexia (Euronext: DEXB) was 2.86 percent higher to €20.89.

Other gainers on the day included oil group Total (Euronext: FT; NYSE: TOT), which gained 0.98 percent to €55.37.

In the semiconductors sector, STMicroelectronics added 1.64 percent to €13.02, while healthcare group Fresenius Medical Care (FWB: FREG) was 1.63 percent higher to €36.07.

Carmakers were lower on the session.

Volkswagen (FWB: VOW; OTC: VLKAY) had the worst day on the Dax, where it dropped 0.5 percent to €152.11, while Peugeot (Euronext: UG; OTC: PEUGY) put in the worst performance on the CAC-40 with a decline of 3.63 percent to €59.44.

Renault also declined, falling 0.88 percent to €99.05.

Utilities lost ground as weel, with Suez dropping 1.61 percent to €39.71 and Gaz de France ending at €35, a decline of 2.26 percent after the two said that they had agreed to new terms regarding their merger.