The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was higher on Monday, ending the session 0.3 percent higher to 1,466.91.

The car and truck making sector did not have as good a day. Porsche and Volkswagen were both lower on indications that Porsche does not intend to attempt a complete takeover of VW, as had been rumored last week. VW dropped 0.1 percent to €80.71, while Porsche was 1.3 percent lower to €889. French carmakers Renault and Peugeot each fell 0.8 percent on the session, to €95.40 and €48.46 respectively. DaimlerChrysler bucked the trend in the sector and added 0.2 percent to €47.26 on upgrades from HVB and Deutsche Bank.

In the insurance sector, reinsures were up. Hannover Re added 0.2 percent to €33.08 and Munich Re gained 1.1 percent to €125.67. Swiss Re was 3.1 percent higher to SFr106.3 on the lowest number of claims made in ten years and healthy premium payments which generated high reserves.

Among stock exchanges, Deutsche Borse gained 2.5 percent to €126.00 on consolidation hopes after Nasdaq offered for the London Stock Exchange.

Aerospace and defense company Thales dropped 1.2 percent to €37.22 even though UBS upped its target share price from €35 to €39 but left its recommendation at “neutral”.

Credit Suisse added 0.2 percent to SFr80.80 even though UBS downgraded the investment bank from “add” to “hold”. Meanwhile, Greek banks were lower on the session due to their exposure to the Turkish banking sector. The declines came after the European Union turned up the pressure on Turkey to resolve its differences with Cyprus ahead of an entrance of Turkey into the EU. National Bank of Greece dropped 1 percent to €36.60, while Alpha Bank was 1.5 percent lower to €23.70 and EFG Eurobank fell 1.8 percent to €28.20.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 1.1 percent higher on Monday, closing at 1,463.96, 14 percent higher than where it began the year. The day’s gains had much to do with rumors of bids and earnings reports that pleased investors.

The insurance sector did well on the day. Allianz added 2.8 percent to €147.90 on positive comments from several brokers in the wake of its quarterly report, issued last Thursday with results that were better than had been anticipated. Citigroup and Credit Suisse both raised their target share prices for the German insurer, to €170 and €171 respectively, while Deutsche Bank also upped its target to €171. Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and UBS also had good things to say.

Reinsurers were up after a quieter than expected hurricane season in the Caribbean. While Munich Re was expected to announce that its third quarter net profit had risen by nearly 50 percent, Hannover Re added 2.57 percent to €33.94 and Swiss Re was 2.71 percent higher to SFr106.

In the banking sector, Banca Monte Dei Paschi di Siena added 3.5 percent to €4.95 on rumors of a possible bid from ABN Amro even though the chairman of ABN’s Italian arm denied that he had called it a takeover target. ABN was 1.1 percent higher to €23.02.

Ferrovial was 2 percent higher to €75.55 after the Spanish construction company said that while it’s property division isn’t officially for sale, it is still looking at offers.

In Europe on Thursday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down by 0.6 percent to 1,383.20 as the day’s trading session closed. The oil and utilities sectors were down on lower oil prices, and the oil and mining sectors were affected by the news that China had raised interest rates unexpectedly. On the other hand, the insurance sector saw gains on the day.

UBS issued comments on several insurers and reinsurers, helping them higher. Axa received an upgrade from “neutral” to “buy, which helped it add 1.4 percent to €29.35. The recommendation on Allianz was raised from “reduce” to “neutral” and it gained 1.2 percent to €134.11. Among reinsurers, UBS reiterated its “buy” recommendations on Swiss Re and Hannover Re, and they each added 0.6 percent to SFr91.45 and €29.70 respectively. Munich Re retained its “neutral” rating and was up 1.2 percent to €113.85. Outside of the round of recommendations, Italian insurer Alleanza was up 2.8 percent to €9.757 on the news that a plan is in the works to return over €1 in excess cash to its shareholders.

Among oil companies, Statoil was down 3.1 percent to NKr203, while Neste Oil dropped 2.7 percent to €27.49 and Total declined by 1.2 percent to €222.20.

In the utilities sector, Finnish company Fortum was worst off, dropping 8.5 percent to €19.60, while Electricite de France lost 4.2 percent to €46.55, RWE was down 2.6 percent to €69.60, and Eon declined by 1.3 percent to €95.95.

Results were mixed in the chemicals sector. Bayer reported an 8.2 percent advance in operating earnings in the first quarter, adding 3.5 percent to €36.75 on the day. BASF, however, dropped 1.1 percent to €68.28.