European equities markets were lower on Tuesday, with the FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropping 0.5 percent to 1,511.95.

The automobile manufacturing sector was lower, hurt by the possibility of interest rates going higher despite higher sales figures. Volkswagen dropped 0.2 percent to €84.38 even though sales of its Audi brand was reported to be selling well in China. Fiat was down 0.4 percent to €15 even though it said that higher sales had allowed it to achieve its full-year target on profits.

Oil companies were also lower as crude oil prices fell again. Norsk Hydro dropped. 1.2 percent to NKr186, while Repsol fell 1.8 percent to €24.95 and Statoil was 2.2 percent lower to NKr158.50. Meanwhile, energy companies were mixed on the session. Endsea was 1.6 percent higher to €37.35 after a court in Madrid lifted an injunction that was preventing Gas Natural from bidding for it. But Eon, which is also interested in Endsea, dropped 0.1 percent to €100.28, while Gas Natural was 0.8 percent lower to €29.60.

Brewers were higher on the session following broker upgrades. Inbev was 1.3 percent higher to €49.22 on a target share price upgrade from €53 to €60 from Sanford C Bernstein. Heineken added 2.8 percent to €38.87 when Morgan Stanley upped its recommendation from “equal weight” to “overweight”. Meanwhile, wine and spirits maker Pernod Ricard was up 2.2 percent to €146.40.

In slow trading due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in the United States, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 nonetheless gained 0.6 percent on the session to close at 1,520.04.

The oil sector was higher even though crude oil prices remained low. OMV added 0.5 percent to €39.38 despite a UBS target share price downgrade from €45 to €43. Repsol gained 0.7 percent to €25.40, while Neste Oil was 2.5 percent higher to €23.07. Even bigger gains were achieved by Norsk Hydro and Statoil, proposed merger partners. Norsk was up 3.2 percent to NKr188.25, while Statoil added 4 percent to NKr162.

In the aerospace sector, EADS gained 2.7 percent to €25.75 on the news that its Eurocopter unit had won a contract to build 37 helicopters for the French police. Engine makers for airplanes, however, were mixed. MTU Aero Engines added 3.2 percent to €37.16 as Deutsche Bank reiterated its “buy” recommendation on the German manufacturer. However, Deutsche Bank reduced its recommendation for French engine maker Safran from “hold” to “sell” on earnings issues. Safran dropped 1 percent, to €17.20.

Merck added 1.8 percent to €89.04 on a raised price target and reconfirmed “overweight” rating from Lehman Brothers. The German pharmaceuticals company, which offered last week for the 16 percent of Serono that it does not yet hold, added 1.8 percent to €89.04.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.1 percent Wednesday to close at 1,502.83 as a strong opening in New York helped overcome earlier declines due to profit taking.

The mining and oil sectors were mixed as base metals prices dropped and broker sentiment on oil was negative. Norsk Hydro, which has aluminium as well as oil interests, dropped 3.2 percent to NKr188.50. Meanwhile, Merrill Lynch reduced its rating on the oil sector as a whole to “underweight” on the basis of falling refining margins. Italian refiner Saras fell 0.8 percent to €4.05, while Neste Oil was 1.8 percent lower to €22.71. On the other hand, Hellenic Petroleum added 5.2 percent to €11.10 after a consortium it participates in found natural gas in Libya.

Steelmakers were hurt by a sector downgrade from Credit Suisse, which reduced its recommendation from “market weight” to “underweight”. ThyssenKrupp dropped 2 percent to €35.96, while Salzgitter fell 2.3 percent to €99.31 and Mittal Steel was 4 percent lower to €31.55.

The banking sector was higher on the session. UBS added 2.5 percent to SFr75.90. Greek banks Alpha Bank and EFG Eurobank both saw gains as well, with Alpha up 2.6 percent to €23.90 and EFG 2.9 percent higher to €28.70.

In Europe on Wednesday the FTSE Eurofirst 300 came within two points of a five and a half year high as it closed up 1.1 percent to 1,487.89.

Technology sectors saw gains on the session. SAP, the software group, was 1.6 percent higher to €40.25. Meanwhile, in the semiconductors sector, ASML gained 2.7 percent to €18.66.

Lufthansa added 1 percent to €20.89 in the wake of an announcement last Friday that it will sell its 50 percent stake in Thomas Cooke. Dresdner Kleinwort called the sale a move “in the right direction”, reiterating its “buy” recommendation on the air carrier and increasing its target share price from €20 to €21.60.

Sacyr Vallehermoso was 2.2 percent higher to €47.02 although JP Morgan began coverage by rating the Spanish builder at “underweight” and setting a target share price of €36, citing concerns about the purchase of a 20 percent stake in oil company Repsol and what it called a “very high” purchase price for road concession operator Europistas.

The Norwegian oil sector was mixed in the aftermath of an announced merger between Statoil and Norsk Hydro. While Norsk Hydro added 1.6 percent to NKr191, Statoil dropped 0.9 percent to NKr162.50 even though S&P reiterated its “strong buy” recommendation.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 1.1 percent to 1,472.65 during the week as trade was light as the Christmas holiday approached.

Among the losers on the week was the Spanish construction sector. Sacyr-Vallehermoso, which dropped 7.4 percent to €46 after it said it has taken a bank loan of €5.175 billion to pay for its purchase of 20 percent of oil company Repsol. JP Morgan began coverage of the Spanish construction company with a rating of “underweight” and a target share price of €36. Meanwhile, Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas dropped 7.6 percent to €76.10 when Banesto dropped its recommendation on FCC from “overweight” to “neutral”.

On the other hand, after seeing tough times due to delays in the construction of the Airbus A380, EADS added 5.7 percent during the week to €25.77 after it received new orders from Qantas and from Singapore Airlines.

In the oil sector, Norsk Hydro had a very good week, adding 20.3 percent to NKr188 after it announced that it will merge its oil and gas production business with Statoil. It will keep its aluminium operations separate. Statoil, however, dropped 5.2 percent to NKr164 despite positive reaction to the deal from most brokers when Citigroup downgraded its recommendation from “buy” to “hold”.

Swiss watch makers saw gains on exports that were up 13 percent in November compared to last year at the same time. Swatch was up 3 percent to SFr54.15, while Richemont added 4.1 percent to SFr70.50.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 0.6 percent lower on Tuesday to 1,477.94 as the oil and steel sectors declined on lower prices for commodities.

In the steel sector, ThyssenKrupp dropped 1 percent to €33.27 even though UBS hiked its target share price when the broker left its recommendation at “neutral”. Salzgitter was also lower, falling 3.8 percent to €96.59 after Credit Suisse reduced its recommendation from “outperform” to “neutral”.

Oil companies were also on the losing end for the session. After a gain of 20 percent on Monday, Norsk Hydro dropped 0.7 percent to NKr187.25. The decline came after Dresdner Kleinwort said that the Monday gains, coming after the announcement of a merger between Norsk Hydro and Statoil, were out of proportion. The broker cut its recommendation on Norsk Hydro to “sell”. Statoil was down 3.1 percent on the session, to NKr164.75, even though JP Morgan said that the merger makes sense for the oil company.

Elsewhere in the oil sector, declines came after Monday’s drop in crude oil prices. Total was 0.9 percent lower to €54.50 as OMV dropped 1.2 percent to €43.33.

In the telecommunications sector, Swisscom added 1.1 percent to SFr457.25 after it said that it will buy back a 25 percent share of Swisscom Mobile from UK company Vodafone. The news spurred Citigroup to hike Swisscom’s target share price from SFr430 to SFr452.50. Meanwhile, hopes of continued privatization sent Hellenic Telecom 1.9 percent higher to €23.72.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 0.1 percent to 1,487.41 on Monday, its first losing session after ten consecutive gains. In Norway, however, the Oslo All-Share index added 1.8 percent after Norsk Hydro saw big gains on the session.

The gain for Norsk Hydro, 20.6 percent to NKr188.50, came after rival Statoil said the two will merge their oil and gas businesses to become the largest offshore oil operation in the world. Norsk’s aluminium business will continue as a stand-alone. The news sent Statoil down 1.7 percent to NKr170 after gains earlier in the session, closing at NKr170. The decline for Statoil came despite a “strong buy” rating from S&P Equitiy Research, which also set a 12-month target share price of NKr194.

The telecommunications sector was mixed on the day. Telecom Italia added 0.2 percent to €2.32, but both France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom saw declines. France Telecom dropped 0.2 percent to €20.94, but is still up 35 percent from its low point of the year, reached on August 11. Lehman Brothers issued positive comments, but WestLB was more pessimistic, downgrading its rating from “hold” to “reduce”. Deutsche Telekom fell 0.9 percent to €13.83 even though Credit Suisse upped its target share price from €10.50 to €12.50.

The insurance sector was also affected by broker actions. Italian insurer Generali dropped 1.1 percent to €34 on a downgrade from “add” to “reduce” from Dresdner Kleinwort.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was higher on Wednesday, but only by 0.9 points to 1,440.02 as investors were reluctant to do much ahead of new data on US employment, due to be released Thursday.

Banks were higher after Anglo Irish Bank said that its full-year pre-tax profits were higher than had been expected and predicted that its good performance will continue into next year. Anglo Irish was up 3.3 percent to €14.82. The announcement and forecast helped Allied Irish Banks to gain 1.7 percent to €21.67, while Bank of Ireland added 2.3 percent to €16.73.

Deutsche Post added 0.6 percent to €23.50 on positive broker comments after making presentations focusing on its DHL Express unit. Credit Suisse raised Deutsch Post’s target share price from €23.5 to €27, while Citigroup held its target share price at €21.50 but said there was a potential for valuation to rise.

In the oil sector, Norsk Hydro was 3 percent lower to NKr147.25 after it said that its production until 2010 will be lower than it previously estimated due to capacity limitations within the industry. Statoil followed Norsk down, falling 1.6 percent to NKr168.50.

Among telecommunications companies, Telecom Italia dropped 0.8 percent to €2.25 on a downgrade from “hold” to “sell” from ABN Amro, which cited operational weakness and limits on value creation.

French retailer PPR was 2.2 percent lower to €113.50 after a placement of 900,000 shares by Morgan Stanley.

With an automobile manufacturing sector that fared well early in the week but saw declines later and crude oil prices that fell dramatically at the end of the week, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down 0.1 percent over the week to 1,462.05.

The oil sector was down on both the day Friday and over the week as a whole. The worst performers were Statoil, which fell 4.8 percent on Friday and 3.3 percent during the week to NKr167.75 and Norsk Hydro, with declines of 5 percent on the day and 3.8 percent on the week to NKr152.

Car and truck makers were mixed on the week. Volkswagen was up and Porsche declined on rumors that Porsche is getting ready to bid for VW. Porsche, which already owns 27.4 percent of VW, said it wants to increase its holding to 29.9 percent; if it acquires 30 percent, it will be forced to submit a bid. VW added 3.9 percent to €83.09 during the week, while Porsche was 1.6 percent lower to €900.

VW, with large stakes in both MAN and Scania, is also a major player in the efforts of German truck maker MAN to acquire Swedish rival Scania. VW favors the merger while Investor, Scania’s other major shareholder, and Scania’s unionized workers, are against the merger. With rumors circulating this week that Scania is preparing a counter bid, MAN added 2.9 percent over the week to €73, while Scania’s B shares were 2.6 percent lower to SKr475. Investor ended the week at SKr155.50.

The semiconductors sector was higher on the week on strong quarterly reports and ahead of the release of a new iteration of Microsoft’s Windows. STMicroelectronics was up 3.5 percent to €14.11, while Infineon added 5.2 percent to €9.78 and ASML gained 6.5 percent to €19.30.

Declines in the oil and automobile manufacturing sectors sent the FTSE Eurofirst 300 0.3 percent lower on Monday to 1,445.8. Carmakers were lower on profit taking, while oil stocks dropped on falling crude oil prices.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, BMW dropped 1.2 percent to €44.64 and Fiat declined 1.3 percent to €13.68. Peugeot was 1.5 percent lower to €44.33 after it cut full-year estimates after reports showed sales down in the first nine months of the year. Volkswagen fell 1.7 percent to €77.40 on mixed reviews from brokers. West LB reduced its recommendation from “hold” to “reduce”, but Goldman Sachs, UBS, and Deutsche Bank all raised VW’s target share price.

Declining oil prices sent Spanish company Cepsa down 1.3 percent to €60.90. Statoil was 2.2 percent lower to NKr165.25 even though it exceeded expectations in its third quarter report on previously high prices for crude. Neste Oil dropped 2.3 percent to €24.81, while Norsk Hydro’s lower than anticipated report on third-quarter profit sent its shares 2.8 percent lower to NKr148.75.

Elsewhere, banks were also lower on the session. Erste Bank of Austria did better than the rest of the sector, losing only 0.2 percent to €53.80 on a report of net profits up by 16 percent in the third quarter, which was just lower than had been expected. Trading income was down by 22 percent. ABN Amro also dropped 0.2 percent, to €22.95, after it said its net profit dropped by 5.6 percent in the quarter. Raiffeisen International dropped 0.7 percent to €89.60.