In Europe on Friday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.3 percent, but over the week the index was slightly lower to 1,447.9. The weekly decline came on a mixed banking sector.

Commerzbank added 4.3 percent on Friday to €29.01 and added 3.8 percent on the week after issuing a third quarter report showed net profits that were higher than had been expected. Credit Suisse was higher on the week as well, adding 1.4 percent to SFr77.50 on third quarter figures that were generally good despite a decline in revenue from equities trading.

On the other hand, Deutsche Bank dropped 1.5 percent during the week to €97.09. Even though it also said equities trading had been down, earnings met expectations overall. UBS reported net profits down more than had been anticipated, again on declines in equities trading. The Swiss bank was 5.3 percent lower on the week to SFr74.70.

Spanish construction group Ferrovial added 9.1 percent to €74.05 after it reported underlying profit up 86 percent in the first nine months of the year, at least partly on its purchase of British airports operator BAA earlier in the year. Still in Spain, property group Metrovacesa was 8 percent higher this week to €121 on a tripling of its profit in the first nine months of the year.

Equities markets in Europe were lower on Thursday on concerns about the state of the US economy and as the European Central Bank held interest rates level but issued comments strongly indicating that rates would be raised at its December meeting.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 closed down 0.4 percent to 1,443.94, while both the Xetra Dax in Germany and the Paris index dropped 1.1 percent, to 6,223.33 and 5,310.07 respectively.

Most banks saw declines. Credit Suisse was an exception, adding 2.3 percent to SFr76.65 on a quarterly report that beat expectations. Elsewhere, UBS fell 1.1 percent to SFr74.10 and Deutsche Bank dropped 1.9 percent to €96.70. The largest bank in Norway, DnB Nor, was 2.9 percent lower to NKr83.70 after it said its pre-tax profits dropped by 1.5 percent.

The oil sector was lower as crude oil prices continue their decline. Cepsa dropped 0.5 percent to €61.85, while Statoil was 1.2 percent lower to NKr165.50

The steel sector also saw losses, with ThyssenKrupp down 1.7 percent to €29.34 and Mittal Steel dropping 3.2 percent to €32.72.

Tire manufacturer Continental was 0.6 percent higher to €87.50 on positive broker comments from Citigroup and Merrill Lynch.

Metrovacesa added 2.9 percent to €120 after it reported that net profits were up by 176 percent in the first nine months of the year. The Spanish property group’s gains were attributed to domestic growth as well as growth in its French unit.

In Europe on Tuesday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 ended slightly lower, down 0.1 percent to 1,449.5

Banks were mixed on the session, with Erste Bank 1.6 percent higher to €54.15 on an upgrade to “buy” from Merrill Lynch, while Raiffeisen added 2.4 percent to €89 and Allied Irish Banks gained 2.8 percent to €21.25. Swedish banks, however, were lower on the session. SEB dropped 1 percent to SKr206, Swedbank was 1.7 percent lower to SKr225.50, and Handelsbanken fell 4.5 percent to SKr192 on third quarter results that saw both operating profits and gross income failing to meet predictions.

Oil companies were mixed as well. Statoil was 1.1 percent higher to NKr167.75 on the announcement that its Snorre oilfield, closed due to a safety problem concerning lifeboats, is being brought back online. Neste Oil added 4.5 percent to €24.35 after declines on Monday on a downgrade from Morgan Stanley. Norsk Hydro, however, dropped 0.5 percent to NKr150.75 after it said that operating profits were up 18 percent in the third quarter, less than had been anticipated.

In the construction sector, Spanish builder Metrovacesa dropped 8.1 percent to €115.70 on remarks from the government stock market regulator that its listing on the Ibex index should be examined.

Alcatel, the French telecommunications equipment maker, added 7.2 percent to €10.29. While net profits were down 42 percent in the quarter, mostly due to one-time gains during the third quarter last year, profits for US telecom Lucent, which Alcatel is purchasing, posted results that were better than had been predicted.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 ended the week at 1,445.39 on Friday, adding 0.3 percent for the session and brining its gains since the beginning of the year to 13 percent. The day’s close was its highest since early June 2001.

Several sectors saw gains over the week. The forestry and paper sector did very well. UPM Kymmene was 6 percent higher to €19.9, while Stora Enso added 8.2 percent to €12.73 and M-Real of Finland gained 17.2 percent to €4.83 on the introduction of a restructuring plan.

Safran, the French manufacturer of jet engines, added 7.3 percent over the week to €16.84 on rumors of a merger with defense company Thales.

Spanish property group Metrovacesa was the big gainer of the week as it was up 18.4 percent to €125.1. It is now 70.2 percent higher than it was at the beginning of September on the strength of bids rumors.

Among losers this week, Nokia dropped 4.2 percent to €15.4 on disappointing quarterly results and lower prices for its phones. Software maker SAP fell 4.9 percent to €156.85, also on its quarterly report. In the semiconductors sector, ASML was 6.9 percent lower to €17.9, while Akzo Nobel was down 10.5 percent on its quarterly report and on the delay of its new anti-schizophrenia drug.

Mixed economic data out of the United States and a hike in interest rates in the eurozone sent the FTSE Eurofirst 300 down by 0.1 percent on Friday and 0.2 percent lower on the week to close at 1,342.43 on Friday. The decline came after the index reached a four and a half year high on Monday, as the negative news overcame news of mergers and acquisitions activity and some positive corporate earnings reports.

Among the gainers during the week were Deutsche Telekom, which had a better than expected fourth-quarter report that sent shares up 1.9 percent during the week to €13.64. Oil field services company Saipem also had a good earnings report as well as a positive outlook statement for 2006, sending its shares up 15 percent on the week to €18.59.

Accor gained on the week on the news that it is thinking about selling its portion of the travel agency Carlson Wagonlit in order to concentrate on its hotel business, with shares up 3.5 percent to €51.45. Property company Metrovacesa was up 20.1 percent to €73 after its rival, Sacresa, made a bid for the company.

Belgian financial services provider Fortis dropped 4.4 percent during the week to €29.12 after it had to release its full-year headline results after a briefcase holding a draft of its report was stolen.

Utility Suez lost 7.9 percent on the week to €31.20 after analysts issued a negative assessment of the terms of its merger with Gaz de France, which lost 4.1 percent during the week to €70.25. Elsewhere in the utilities sector, Germany’s Eon was down 4.8 percent on the week to €90.23 after legislation made it less likely that its bid for Endsea of Spain would succeed.