European markets declined Monday.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 0.91 percent to 1,586.36.

Madrid’s IBEX fell 0.48 percent to 15,187.5, while the CAC-40 was down 0.62 percent to 5,807.44 in Paris and Frankfurt’s Dax was 0.89 percent lower to 7,969.47.

The best performer on the CAC-40 was luxury goods manufacturer LVMH (Euronext: MC), which added 2.55 percent to €87.68 after it reported sales up by 8 percent in the past 9 months.

Utilities were also higher.

EDF (Euronext: EEN) gained 0.3 percent to €77.75, while RWE (FWB: RWE) added 0.37 percent to €89.69 and Eon (FWB: EOA; LSE: EON; NYSE: EON) was up 0.77 to 129.15 for the best performance on the Dax.

Gaz De France (Euronext: GAZ) was 0.82 percent higher to €38.15 while Suez (Euornext: SZE; NYSE: SZE) added 0.89 percent to €42.93.

In the oil sector, Total (Euronext: FP; NYSE: TOT) gained 1.51 percent to €56.43.

Peugeot (Euronext: UG; OTC: PEUGY) turned in the worst performance on the CAC-40 as it dropped 3.7 percent to €57.85, while Renault (Euronext: RNO) was down 2.06 percent to €108.14.

In the related tire making sector, Michelin (Euronext: ML) fell 2.9 percent to €96.83.

Airlines also saw declines.

Lufthansa (FWB: LHA) was 1.74 percent lower to €20.86 while Air France (Euronext: AF; NYSE: AKH) dropped 2.19 percent to €27.20.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down for a third consecutive day on Thursday as investors continued to worry that the US Federal Reserve could raise interest rates again soon. The Eurofirst was 0.9 percent lower to 1,351.32, its lowest level in a month.

The automobile manufacturing sector saw declines. BMW dropped 1.6 percent to €38.97 on the news that sales dropped by 10.9 percent in August. That announcement sent the rest of the sector lower as well. Volkswagen and Renault each fell 2.1 percent, to €62.05 and €88 respectively.

Aerospace company EADS was 4.4 percent lower to €21.79 when BAE Systems said it is determined to sell its 20 percent portion of Airbus to EADS.

LVMH was down by 3.3 percent to €77.75 when its interim report did not meet analyst expectations. The luxury goods group’s margins in its wine and spirits unit were under pressure. Still, J. P. Morgan reiterated its “overweight” recommendation and its target share price of €94 on the stock. The news sent Christian Dior down 3.5 percent to €78.25 despite a gain of 45 percent in its profits in the first half. Dior owns a controlling share of LVMH.

Retailer Ahold added 4.1 percent to €7.65 on a 60 percent gain in net profits in the second quarter, mostly due to better than expected performance in its US foodservice distribution and supermarket units. The results have halted, for the time being, calls for Ahold to sell its US business and concentrate on its European concerns.

The European equities markets were down on Thursday on weakness in several sectors despite strength in other areas, as well as on renewed worries about rising interest rates after the European Central Bank raised interest rates to 2.5 percent, up a quarter point.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down 0.9 percent to 1,343.20.

There were some gains on the day due to mergers and acquisitions action and rumors. Swedish engineering group Atlas Copco was up 4.6 percent in its A shares to SKr205.00 on speculation that it had gotten a good price for its US-based construction equipment rental operation, Rental Service. In the biotechnology sector, NicOx gained 78 percent to €5.98 on the news that it has signed a deal worth up to €323 million with Pfizer, giving Pfizer exclusive rights to NicOx eye treatment technology.

The luxury goods sector was also up on the day, with LVMH up 3.7 percent to €79.35 on its report that operating profits had grown 16 percent over the full year, well above expectations. Elsewhere in the sector, Christian Dior gained 3.9 percent to €81.80, while Richemont was up 3.2 percent to SFr59.30.

Insurers were down, however. Swiss Re, for example, lost 4.7 percent to SFr89.50 on the announcement that its net profits had declined by 41.4 percent.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, Volkswagen dropped 3.7 percent to €55.42 over internal problems concerning the German automaker’s restructuring plans.

The telecommunications sector was mixed, with Deutsche Telekom up 1 percent to €13.63 on a good fourth-quarter earnings report and Greek telecom OTE up 1.7 percent to €18.18. France Telecom, however, was down 0.4 percent to €18.13.