Despite declines during the week, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 closed out the week up by 1.2 percent to 1,322.02 thanks to strong rallies in the last two sessions of the week.

The oil sector saw strong gains during the week. OMV added 10.7 percent to €47.05 after it abandoned a merger with electric utility Verbund. Neste Oil was up 8.7 percent to €25.78, Statoil gained 6.5 percent to NKr180, and Norsk Hydro advanced by 6.2 percent to NKr172.

Banks were mixed. Natexis Banques Populaire gained 9.2 percent to €206 as it progressed toward its merger with Ixis. Raiffeisen International, however, ended the week down by 0.5 percent to €67.40 despite the fact that it gained about 15 percent in the final half of the week.

Stock exchanges were lower on the week. Deutsche Borse lost 6.3 percent to €103.80 as it looked like it would not merge with Euronext after all. Euronext, which expressed a preference for a bid by the New York Stock Exchange, dropped 7.2 percent to €69.25.

The steel sector also saw declines during the week. Arcelor was down by 5.1 percent to €33.05 after its announcement of a takeover of Severstal in Russia was perceived as a way to defeat a hostile bid by Mittal Steel. Mittal dropped 1.6 percent on the week to €25.

With several European markets closed due to a holiday, trade was light on Thursday. However, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 managed to add 1.2 percent on the day to 1,300.26.

Among the stocks seeing gains on the day, several were helped by broker upgrades. Among those were Eiffage, the French construction group, which added 1.5 percent to €53.95 after Citigroup upgraded it from “hold” to “buy”, at least partly on a likely merger with Spanish builder Sacyr Vallehermoso, which owns 33 percent of Effiage already. Sacyr was also up on the day, by 2.5 percent to €24.05.

In the banking sector, Spain’s Banco de Sabadell gained 2.4 percent to €26.81 on an upgrade from “hold” to “buy” from Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein.

Deutsche Bank upgraded ProSiebenSat.1 from “hold” to “buy”, sending the German broadcaster 5.1 percent higher to €20.00.

Other companies saw their shares gain value on bargain-hunting by investors. In the steel sector, for example, ThyssenKrupp gained 4.6 percent on the day to €26.29.

Losers on the day included stock exchanges. Euronext lost 1.6 percent to €65.90 after one of its major shareholders dropped its advocacy for a deal between it and Deutsche Borse, which dropped 2.9 percent to €97.82.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 saw gains on Tuesday after Monday’s substantial losses, with a rise of 2.4 percent to 1,302.02. The gains came as investors looked for good buys and commodity prices turned upward again.

In the oil sector, including oil companies and companies that service oilfield operations, gains were substantial. Statoil led the way among oil companies, adding 9.8 percent to NKr180. Norsk Hydro gained 8.8 percent to NKr167.50. Neste Oil was up 7.7 percent to €24.35, while OMV advanced by 7.5 percent to €42.99.

Among companies that service the oil industry, toolmaker Atlas Copco was up 11.5 percent on the day to SKr203.50. Its peer Sandvik saw a gain of 8.1 percent to SKr439.50. Italian company Saipem matched Atlas Copco’s 11.5 percent gain to close at €17.782, while Dutch company SBM Offshore, which builds oil production and storage platforms, added 6.9 percent to €81.60.

Banks with exposure to the emerging markets of Eastern Europe, which saw substantial declines earlier, were up significantly on the day. Raiffeisen was up 10.8 percent to €65.40, while Eurobank gained 7.7 percent to €22.84 and Alpha Bank advanced by 2.3 percent to €20.06.

Stock exchange Euronext was up 3.6 percent to €70 after it accepted an offer from the New York Stock Exchange, rejecting the offer from Deutsche Borse. Euronext said that it believed the NYSE offer was in the best interest of shareholders and that regulatory approval for the merger with the NYSE would go more smoothly than an attempt to merge with Deutsche Borse. The news did not hurt Deutsche Borse, which added 1.4 percent to €102.76.

In Europe on Monday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 2.7 percent to 1,271.45 as investors fled emerging markets and looked for safe places to put their money.

Banks were the big losers on the day, as were stock exchanges and the steel and oil sectors.

The price of crude oil was down, taking shares in oil companies along with it. OMV dropped 5.9 percent to €40, while Norway’s Statoil was down 3 percent to NKr164 and Total lost 2.5 percent to €49.85.

In the steel sector, Arcelor dropped 5.6 percent to €32.90 as it said it was looking at a new bid from Mittal Steel and that it has called a shareholder meeting to be held on June 21 for a vote on the bid. Mittal declined by 5.9 percent to €23.91.

Euronext lost 9.5 percent to €67.55 after the New York Stock Exchange offered a bid of $21 billion for the European stock exchange operator. Deutsche Borse, which has also been in talks with Euronext, was down 8.5 percent to €101.30 on the possibility that it might raise its bid.

The banking sector saw substantial declines on the day. Those banks with high exposure to emerging markets in Europe were down the most. Raiffeisen International dropped 9.3 percent to €60.85. Eurobank, in Greece, declined by 6.9 percent to €21.20, while Alpha Bank was down 3.3 percent to €20.02.

Investment banks also saw their shares lose value. UBS fell 4.2 percent to SFr133.40. Credit Suisse lost 3.7 percent to SFr68.15. Deutsche Bank was down 3.1 percent to €88.18.

Credit Agricole was down 3.7 percent on the day to €28.92 when it said that it was assessing Alliance & Leicester ahead of a possible bid. However, CA said that the assessment was in its first stages and did not mean that a bid would be forthcoming.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 saw a slight gain on Friday, adding 0.1 percent to 1,306.56. The gain did not help the week’s results however, which saw the 300 drop by 4.1 percent.

Much of the week’s losses could be blamed on the oil sector, where losses were substantial. Norwegian companies were hard hit, but other companies in the sector were down as well. Norsk Hydro was down 13.8 percent over the week to NKr162, hurt not only by the drop in crude oil prices but also by declines in aluminium, in which it also has interests. Statoil dropped 11.1 percent to NKr169.

Some oil and oil-related companies elsewhere in Europe saw even steeper declines. OMV, based in Austria, lost 15.3 percent to €42.41. Neste Oil declined by 13.9 percent to €23.72. Saipem, the Italian Oil services group, was down 12.3 percent to €17.36.

Stock exchanges were lower as well. Even through Euronext added 5.4 percent on the day Friday, it lost 0.4 percent on the week to close at €74.60. Deutsche Borse was also up on the day but down for the week, as it gained 3.2 percent Friday but lost 10 percent during the week to close at €110.74.

In the steel sector, Arcelor gained 8.9 percent on Friday, overcoming earlier losses to add 0.5 percent for the week, to close at €34.84 after Mittal Steel offered a revised bid that was one-third higher than its earlier offer. Mittal was down 17 percent this week to €25.41.

In Europe on Monday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down 0.6 percent to 1,388.98, although the telecommunications and oil sectors saw gains on the day.

The oil sector was mixed even as crude oil prices continued to rise and ABN Amro began coverage of Norsk Hydro and OMV with “buy” recommendations for both companies. Norsk Hydro gained 1.8 percent to NKr987.50, but OMV dropped 1.8 percent to €56.10. Neste Oil, meanwhile, gained 2.3 percent to €29.55. Oil support group Saipem added 2.3 percent as well, to €21.10.

Deutsche Telekom was up 3.7 percent to €14.16 when private equity investor Blackstone purchased a 4.5 percent stake in the telecom from German state development bank KfW. Elsewhere in the sector, Telekom Austria added 1.3 percent to €19.17 and France Telecom was up 1.1 percent to €18.20 as the Blackstone purchase raised hopes of further consolidations in the sector.

Stock exchange Euronext was up 1 percent to €73.05, primarily on a report that the owner of the Dubai Stock Exchange is planning to bid on the European exchange.

In the steel sector, ThyssenKrupp gained 0.5 percent to €26.97 when it said it anticipates that sales in China and Hong Kong will double in the fiscal year and on an upgrade from HSBC from “neutral” to “overweight”. HSBC also raised the steelmaker’s target share price from to €31, up from €18.

Despite a 32 percent rise in earnings in the first quarter, Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis dropped 1.2 percent to SFr72.50 on the news that it plans to hire 1,000 new sales staff.

In Europe on Thursday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up slightly ahead of the Good Friday holiday tomorrow, but volumes were low. The Eurofirst added 0.3 percent on the day to 1,369.26.

Utilities were mixed. HSBC upgraded Suez from “neutral” to “overweight” in anticipation of the proposed merger with Gaz de France, but Suez still dropped 0.2 percent to €30.97 despite a raised target share price, up to €35. HSBC initiated coverage of Gaz de France with a rating of “overweight” and a target share price of €33. As a consequence, Gaz de France was up 0.1 percent to €28.15.

Elsewhere in the sector, Electricite de France was up 2.8 percent to €47.12. HSBC initiated coverage with a “neutral” rating and a target share price of €38, but Morgan Stanley reiterated its “overweight” rating and raised the utility’s target share price to €50. German utility RWE added 1.4 percent to €72.06.

Stock exchanges were up on the day. Euronext was up 1 percent to €68 on a report that five French banks that own a combined 9.7 percent stake in the exchange were in talks to enter into a shareholder pact that would allow them in future merger decisions. The London Stock Exchange added 2.8 percent to £12.32 after it said that it could withstand bid pressure alone but was thinking about mergers with other exchanges.

In the telecommunications sector, equipment maker Ericsson gained 0.7 percent to SKr29.50 on the news that its joint venture with Sony had sold 13.3 million handsets during the first quarter, slightly above its prediction of 13.1 million, which put profits and sales above forecasts for the quarter.

Ericsson’s report helped the semiconductor sector. Infineon added 3 percent to €8.87 and ASML was up 1.3 percent to €16.71.

Among retailers, Carrefour advanced by 3.7 percent to €44.57 as it said it’s first-quarter sales were up 8.3 percent.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down 0.2 percent to 1,364.88 on Wednesday as a result of profit-taking and the fallout of high commodity prices.

After the announcement that Nasdaq had acquired nearly 15 percent of the London Stock Exchange, mergers within the sector became a hot topic of conversation. Among the moves being rumored were a merger of the LSE and Euronext in order to stave off a possible hostile takeover of LSE by Nasdaq, with the Tuesday move only an opening gambit. Amid the rumors, Euronext added 1.7 percent to €67.35. Deutsche Borse also benefited from the talk, rising 1.5 percent to €112.48.

Talk of possible bids also had an effect on the construction and telecommunications sectors. In construction, Spanish group Sacyr-Vallehermoso and French company Eiffage both were down on the day after it was said that Sacyr might soon make a bid for Eiffage. Sacyr dropped 2.4 percent to €25.86, while Eiffage was down 1.1 percent to €121.80.

In the telecommunications sector, KPN was up and Belgacom was down slightly on reports that Belgacom might bid for KPN. Belgacom lost 0.1 percent to €27.81, while KPN added 1.6 percent to €9.67. Belgacom’s chief executive said that no bid for KPN was forthcoming, but the company has expressed an interest in buying Vodafone’s stake in Belgian operator Proximus. However, analysts believe that a move in that direction would find Belgacom in competition with companies such as Telekom Austria, which was down 0.9 percent on the day to €18.44.

Elsewhere in the telecommunications sector, Ericsson added 2.8 percent to €29.30 on an increased target share price, from SKr30 to SK4 32, from Lehman Brothers. Nokia dropped 1.2 percent to €17.38 on profit-taking and despite comments from Credit Suisse that Nokia’s valuation is attractive and its product portfolio was improving.

In Europe on Tuesday the FTSE Eurofirst 300 hit another four and a half year high to close 0.1 percent higher to 1,373.56.

The gain came even though shares in the oil sector were down as crude oil prices dropped early in the day. Total and Eni dropped 1 percent each, to €210.90 and €23.21 respectively. Statoil declined by 2 percent to NKr171.50.

Stock exchange operators were down as well as bid rumors began to subside. German exchange Deutsche Borse was down 2.4 percent on the day to €114.43, while Euronext dropped by 1.3 percent to €61.55.

The banking sector was mixed on the day. ABN Amro was up on reports that BBVA was thinking of bidding for the Dutch bank, gaining 2.7 percent to €25.68 after going as high as €25.78 earlier in the day. BBVA, however, dropped 0.8 percent to €17.

Banco Santander Central Hispano declined by 0.1 percent to €12.07 on talk that it might be looking for more foreign purchases after recently buying a UK mortgage lender. Smaller Spanish banks were up, however, with Banco Popular gaining 4.3 percent to €12.52 and Bankinter adding 0.5 percent to €57.10.

Icelandic banks were down on the day after Danske Bank issued a prediction that the economy there is poised to enter a recession. Kaupthing dropped 3.9 percent to IKr878, while Landsbanki declined by 4.3 percent to IKr26.50 and Glitnir fell 4.2 percent to IKr18.20.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.1 percent on Friday and gained 1.1 percent over the week to close at 1,369.38. Mergers and acquisitions provided most of the activity during the week.

Doubts that a widely-touted merger between Deutsche Borse and Euronext would come to anything did not hurt the shares of either stock market operator. Deutsche Borse was up 13.2 percent over the week, ending at €117.74, while Euronext was up 15.5 percent to €63.50. Some analysts said that such a merger would face a number of problems, including a monopoly on the derivatives market but not least where the headquarters of the newly created company would be located.

Analysts also had questions about a rumor that Zurich Financial Services is in discussions with US company St. Paul Travelers concerning a merger. Despite the questions, ZFS was up 4.7 percent on the day and gained 5.4 percent over the week to close at SFr316 on Friday.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Schering was up and Merck was down over the week after Schering rejected an offer worth €77 per share from Merck. Merck dropped 4.6 percent to €79.90, while Schering gained 24 percent to €82.85.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, BMW was up 4.3 percent to €42.30 after it issued a positive guidance report that prompted a number of brokers to upgrade the carmaker’s shares.