In Europe on Tuesday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 declined by 2.2 percent to close at 1,293.39. Banks saw substantial losses, as did several other key sectors.

Automobile manufacturers were down on the day. DaimlerChrysler, Porsche, and Volkswagen each declined by 2.2 percent. Porsche’s losses were in consequence of a reiteration by Citigroup of its “sell” rating on the carmaker, its setting of a target share price of €690, and its criticism of Porsch’s recent acquisition of a stake in Volkswagen. Porsche’s shares ended the day at €754.97, while Volkswagen closed at €54.82 and DaimlerChrysler ended the session with its shares trading at €40.38. Elsewhere in the sector, BMW dropped 2.3 percent to €40.03 and Renault was down 3.1 percent to €87.75.

Utilities also took a hit on the day. Amid reports that France will attempt to retain state regulation of the price of gas and electricity after market liberalization next year in order to gain the approval of parliament for the merger of Gaz de France and Suez, Gas de France dropped 1.4 percent to €26.05 and Suez was down 3.5 percent to €29.50. In addition, Electricite de France declined by 3.7 percent to €41.31.

In the banking sector, Swiss private bank Julius Baer was down 5.3 percent to SFr105.30. National Bank of Greece did almost as badly, dropping 5.2 percent to €31.30. Commerzbank declined by 4 percent to €28.87 even though it said that rumors that it has recently suffered large derivatives losses are false. Meanwhile in Belgium, KBC lost 3.6 percent to €83.55 even though it’s quarterly report was more positive than had been expected and it received an upgrade from “add” to “buy” from West LB.

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.

European equities markets saw increases on Monday, primarily on gains in the automobile manufacturing sector. Most brewers were also up, as were some parts of the chemicals industry. Other companies did not fare so well on the day.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.3 percent to 1,326.87 after a loss of 0.5 percent on Friday. Meanwhile, Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax gained 0.5 percent to 5,728.68 and in France the CAC-40 was up 0.3 percent to 4,923.19.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, Volkswagen was up 5.3 percent to €58.33 on the strength of an increased target price of €55, up from €38, by UBS. Porsche was also the recipient of an upgrade, from HVB, to “outperform” from “neutral”, sending its shares up 4.2 percent to €695,50. Porsche’s price target was also raised, from €688 to €718. Renault gained 4.2 percent to €83.05 and BMW gained 2.3 percent to €40.50.

Meanwhile, brewers Heineken and Carlsberg both also received upgrades to “buy” from Merrill Lynch. Heineken gained 2.1 percent on the day to €29.14, while Carlsberg was up 1.9 percent to DKr368. Carlsberg’s joint venture with Scottish & Newcastle as well as its cost-cutting opportunities, were among the reasons for its ratings bump. Bucking the upward trend, Belgian brewer Inbev was down 1.8 percent to €38.59 as Merrill Lynch downgraded it to “sell” on issues related to valuation.

In the chemicals sector, Swiss specialty chems company Clariant was up as much as 10 percent during the day and settled up 2.7 percent to €20.70 on news over the weekend that it is at an advanced stage in sale talks with private-equity firms.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Roche was down 2 percent to SFr188.10 even though it said there would be no financial impact due to its suspension of patient recruitment for trials on Avastin, a colon cancer drug. The suspension was said to be on account of safety concerns.

Norwegian energy group Statoil dropped 3.4 percent to NKr170.50 after it reported that its fourth quarter operating profits were up less than had been anticipated.

In Europe on Wednesday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 gained 0.9 percent to 1,229.21.

The banking sector was responsible for 41 percent of the index’s advance. Insurers and automobile manufacturers also did well.

DaimlerChrysler gained 1.7 percent to €45.65 ahead of an expected announcement of 5,000 to 8,000 jobs to be cut. Helped by a stronger dollar, BMW was up 1.3 percent to €38.90, Peugeot rose by 2.7 percent to €57.40, and Renault added 3.2 percent to €79.65. Volkswagen was up 1.9 percent to €38.30. Bucking the sector trend, Porsche lost 3.6 percent on the day to €642.29 as investors were still not sure they liked the carmaker’s plan to buy 20 percent of VW.

In the insurance sector, Munich Re gained 1.7 percent to €94.71 as it announced its estimate of its loss burden related to both Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita. Swiss reinsurer Converium gained 1.2 percent to SFr12.95, also after it released estimated hurricane-related losses. Allianz gained 4 percent to €111.40 on an upgrade of its rating from “hold” to “buy” by Deutsche Bank, which also upped the insurer’s price target from €115 to €127.

In the banking sector, Vienna-listed Raiffeisen International gained 7.6 percent to €53.52 on an initial “buy” rating from UBS. BNP Paribas received an upgrade from “in-line” to “outperform” from Goldman Sachs, gaining 2.4 percent to €62.60. BNP Paribas rival Societe Generale gained 1.7 percent to €94.80 after BNP’s chief executive said a merger between the two was not likely.

Elsewhere in the sector, Credit Agricole gained 3.4 percent to €24.45, Deutsche Bank added 2.6 percent to €77.85, and Commerzbank also rose 2.6 percent to €22.82.