The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was lower on Thursday, losing early gains after the New York markets were weaker in early trade. The 300 closed at 1,509.47, a decline of 0.1 percent on the session.

The pharmaceuticals sector saw declines. Novartis dropped 1.4 percent to SFr72.60 even though it reported record sales and profits in its full-year results when its outlook for the new year didn’t please investors. Merck, meanwhile, was 1.9 percent lower to €88.04 even though it said its operating profits were up by 58 percent in the fourth quarter.

Allianz dropped 1.9 percent to €151.68 on its offer to buy the 42.2 percent of French insurer AGF that it does not already own. The deal, which had been expected, involves €7.5 billion in cash and €2.3 billion in shares. Some shareholders would have preferred that the German insurer buy back its own shares. AGF added 0.2 percent to € on the news.

In the telecommunications sector, KPN gained 2.7 percent to €11.67 when Goldman Sachs put the Dutch company on its European buy list.

Endemol added 0.2 percent to €19.22 after JP Morgan said that Telefonica will soon sell its 75 percent stake in the Dutch television production company. Some analysts said that the share price could be driven higher than it might have otherwise been due to increased ratings for Endemol’s “Big Brother” reality show. The higher ratings have been generated by recent controversy over the show.

In a holiday shortened week, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.2 percent to close on Friday at 1,486.08. Gains peaked on Wednesday when the index breached the 1,500 level.

Airlines did well during the week as falling crude oil prices provided the hope that fuel costs would decline. Ryanair added 5.3 percent to €10.98, while Air France-KLM was 7.2 percent higher to €34.20. Lufthansa was also helped by positive comments from brokers after it sold its 50 percent share of travel company Thomas Cook, gaining 7.8 percent over the week to €22.47.

The telecommunications sector also saw gains. Telecom Italia added 3.1 percent to €2.36, while Deutsche Telekom was 4.4 percent higher to €14.45 and KPN gained 4.9 percent to €11.30.

On the other hand, European utilities were hurt by concerns that European Union regulators would come down hard on the sector after an investigation found evidence of misbehavior. Gaz de France was 1 percent lower to €34.50 and Suez fell 2.1 percent to €38.42 among rumors that a bid for Suez from a French billionaire could prevent their proposed merger. Elsewhere in the sector, RWE dropped 3.6 percent to €80.50, while Eon was down 5.4 percent to €97.26 and Veolia Environment fell 9.2 percent over the week to €53.05.

The oil sector was hurt by falling crude oil prices. Total ended the week 3.5 percent lower to €52.75, while Neste Oil dropped 5 percent to €21.89 and Statoil fell 5.9 percent to NKr155.50.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 0.3 percent lower on Thursday, closing at 1,499.03 on declines in the oil and steel sectors. The decline came even though the telecommunications and airlines sectors were up on the session.

Among telecoms, fixed-line carriers added 1.7 percent. France Telecom added 1.4 percent to €21.68, while KPN gained 3.2 percent to €11.26 and Hellenic Telecom was 3.5 percent higher to €24. Meanwhile, mobile carrier Cosmote added 3.3 percent to €22.98.

Airlines were helped by declines in crude oil prices as investors hoped that fuel prices would also go down. Air France-KLM added 1.2 percent to €33.12. Lufthansa was helped when Dresdner Kleinwort raised its target share price from €21.60 to €26 and repeated its “buy” recommendation on the air carrier. The positive comments came after Lufthansa sold its 50 percent stake in Thomas Cook, the travel agency. Lufthansa was 2.1 percent higher to €21.96. Ryanair gained 3.6 percent to €10.80 after it said that while its aircraft were slightly less full on average last year, it carried 19 percent more passengers.

In the oil sector, Total dropped 2 percent to €53.45, while Neste Oil fell 3 percent to €22.04 and Statoil was 3.7 percent lower to NKr157.25.

Steelmakers continued to suffer from a sector downgrade issued by Credit Suisse on Wednesday. Mittal Steel dropped 2.8 percent to €30.65, ThyssenKrupp was 3.4 percent lower to €34.73, and Vallourec fell 4.7 percent to €208.40.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 0.5 percent on Monday to 1,349.51despite advances in the telecommunications sector spurred by last week’s gains by Telecom Italia. Oil stocks were lower due to declining oil prices.

Telecom Italia added over 4 percent last week when it became known that it is thinking about selling its wireless division. While trade was suspended on TI on Monday while its board met to consider reorganization, the rest of the sector saw gains. Telefonica was 0.9 percent higher to €13.18, while KPN added 1.4 percent to €9.86, Deutsche Telekom gained 3 percent to €11.57, and France Telecom advanced by 3.5 percent to €17.15. The European fixed-line sector was up 1.5 percent as a whole.

Roche dropped 4.6 percent to SFr215.20 after the US Food and Drug Administration asked for more information about the Avastin cancer treatment currently under review for the treatment of breast cancer. The drug is produced by Genentech, in which Roche owns a controlling interest.

In the oil sector, Neste Oil dropped 2.5 percent to €22.37 even though UBS issued an upgrade. OMV was 3.1 percent lower to €39.40, while Statoil fell 4.8 percent to NKr158.50.

Michelin added 1.6 percent to €52.75 on an upgrade from “neutral” to “buy” from UBS, which also raised the tire maker’s target share price from €46 to €60 on price declines in rubber that it believes is not just temporary.

In Europe on Tuesday the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.4 percent to 1,405.55 as the telecommunications and automobile manufacturing sectors saw advances on the day.

Volkswagen added 4.3 percent to €61.24 after it announced that the number of cars it sold in the first four months of the year was up by 14.5 percent. It also said that restructuring is still a top priority. Renault was up 3.2 percent to €96.35, while Porsche gained 2.1 percent to €824 on a reiteration of its “outperform” rating from Credit Suisse. Peugeot was up 2 percent to €53.15.

KPN, the Dutch telecoms group, added 3.1 percent to €9.62 on a report that its core profit was up 10 percent in the first quarter, higher than expected, as its mobile unit more than compensated for weakness in its fixed-line business. This report earned a reiteration of its “outperform” rating from Bear Stearns. Other telecommunications companies that saw advances on the day included Telnor, which added 0.9 percent to NKr83.25, and Telecom Italia, up 2.1 percent to €2.322.

Not all telecoms saw gains on the day, however. The Greek Cosmote, OTE’s mobile unit, dropped 2.4 percent to €19.10 on the news that it has purchased 42 percent of Germanos. Meanwhile, Hellenic Telecommunications (OTE) dropped 1.1 percent to €18.98. Germanos gained 3.2 percent to €18.6 on the news.

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.

The European equities markets saw advances on Monday as the FTSE Eurofirst 300 gained 0.61 percent to 1,330.15. Mergers and acquisitions continued to be in the spotlight.

In the utilities sector, Suez, which agreed to merge with Gaz de France last week, was the target of rumors that it could be a takeover target for Italy’s Enel. Suez gained 4.6 percent to €32.64 on the news. Gaz de France was up 0.8 percent to €29.23. Enel dropped 0.2 percent to €6.887.

German engineering and industrial gasses company Linde saw an advance on the news that it has agreed to purchase the UK’s BOC Group for €11.6 billion ($14 billion). Linde was up 7.5 percent to €70.45 on the news and after West LB reinterated its “buy” recommendation and raised Linde’s target share price to €95 from €79. BOC fell a bit to £15.43.

The news that AT&T has plans to buy BellSouth in the United States led to consolidation expectations in the European telecommunications sector. Dutch telecom KPN was up 6.2 percent to €9.44. Telecom Italia was up 3.2 percent to €2.392. Meanwhile, Deutsche Telekom advanced by 2.4 percent to €13.96 and France Telecom added 2.5 percent to €18.60.

Elsewhere, German steel and engineering group ThyssenKrupp gained 5 percent to €22.20 on the report that it is nearly ready to sell its automotive division in order to purchase Canadian steel maker Dofasco. The gain came even though ThyssenKrupp denied the report.