European markets were significantly lower on the session.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 fell 2.29 percent to 1,492.66.

The IBEX dropped 2.29 percent to 13,873.4 in Madrid, while in Frankfurt the Dax was down 2.43 percent to 7,436.63 and the CAC-40 was 2.63 percent lower in Paris.

There were no gainers on the CAC-40 on the session, while property group Unibail (Euronext: UL) dropped 5.99 percent to €168.52 for the worst performance on that index.

There were only three winners on the Dax.

The best performer was Fresenius Medical Care (FWB: FREG) with a gain of 1.12 percent to €36.01.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Schering (FWB: SCH) was up 0.44 percent to €104.30, while software group SAP (FWB: SAP; NYSE: SAP) added 0.27 percent to €40.40.

The worst performer on the Dax was Commerzbank (FWB: CBK), which dropped 5.20 percent to €28.57.

In the Paris banking sector, Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) fell 3.91 percent to €113.90.

The car and truck manufacturing sector was lower on the session.

BMW (FWB: BMW) was down 3.64 percent to €35.49, while Renault (Euronext: RNO) dropped 4.28 percent to €90.47 and truck maker Man (FWB: EDF1) was 4.61 percent lower to €100.74.

Aerospace group EADS (Euronext: EAD; FWB: EAD) fell 4.49 percent to €20.23.

Schneider Electric was down 4.3 percent to €92.89. Construction materials group Lafarge (Euronext: LG; NYSE: LR) dropped 3.85 percent to €107.50.

European markets declined on Wednesday.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 1.69 percent lower to 1,523.24.

In Frankfurt, the Dax dropped 1.73 percent to 7,588.03, while the Paris CAC-40 fell 2.14 percent to 5,551.55 and the IBEX was down 2.31 percent to 14,252.5 in Madrid.

There was only one winner on the CAC-40, in the banking sector, where Dexia (Euronext: DEXB; Euronext: DX; LuxSE: DXB) added 0.19 percent to €20.93.

Meanwhile, the Dax saw only two gainers on the day.

HypoVereinsbank (FWB: HVM) was 0.57 percent higher to €40.45, while chemicals group Altana (FWB: ALT; NYSE: AAA) had the best performance there with a gain of 1.61 percent to €17.73.

Carmakers were lower, with Renault (Euronext: RNO) turning in the worst performance on the CAC-40 with a drop of 4.09 percent to €95.00.

Peugeot (Euronext: UG; OTC: PEUGY) was the second-biggest loser of the day in Paris as it fell 3.89 percent to €57.13 after it said it could cut as many as 8,000 jobs by the end of the year.

Airlines were also lower.

Lufthansa (FWB: LHA) was down 2.77 percent to €21.12, while Air France (Euronext: AF; NYSE: AKH) dropped 3.26 percent to €29.70.

In the banking sector, Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) fell 2.93 percent to €118.40.

Among pharmaceuticals groups, Bayer (FWB: BAY; NYSE: BAY; TYO: 4863) was 2.53 percent lower to €57.20 on the announcement that it would delist from the New York Stock Exchange.

Aerospace group EADS (Euronext: EAD; FWB: EAD) was 3.01 percent lower to €21.26.

European markets were higher on Tuesday.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.62 percent to 1,548.76.

The IBEX was 0.3 percent higher to 14,590.1 in Madrid, while the Paris CAC-40 gained 0.38 percent to 5,672.72 and Frankfurt’s Dax was up 0.96 percent to 7,721.77.

Property investment and management group Unibail (Euronext: UL) had the best day on the CAC-40, adding 4.3 percent to €185.40.

Meanwhile, chemicals group Altana (FWB: ALT; NYSE: AAA) was the best performer on the Dax with a gain of 3.02 percent to €17.43.

Banks saw gains.

BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) was 1.2 percent higher to €78.30, while Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) gained 2.8 percent to €30.94.

Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) was up 1.21 percent to €121.97, Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE DB) added 2.92 percent to €94.16, and Dexia (Euronext: DEXB) was 2.86 percent higher to €20.89.

Other gainers on the day included oil group Total (Euronext: FT; NYSE: TOT), which gained 0.98 percent to €55.37.

In the semiconductors sector, STMicroelectronics added 1.64 percent to €13.02, while healthcare group Fresenius Medical Care (FWB: FREG) was 1.63 percent higher to €36.07.

Carmakers were lower on the session.

Volkswagen (FWB: VOW; OTC: VLKAY) had the worst day on the Dax, where it dropped 0.5 percent to €152.11, while Peugeot (Euronext: UG; OTC: PEUGY) put in the worst performance on the CAC-40 with a decline of 3.63 percent to €59.44.

Renault also declined, falling 0.88 percent to €99.05.

Utilities lost ground as weel, with Suez dropping 1.61 percent to €39.71 and Gaz de France ending at €35, a decline of 2.26 percent after the two said that they had agreed to new terms regarding their merger.

European markets declined substantially on Tuesday after over a week of steady gains.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 1.81 percent to 1,488.92. In Frankfurt, the Dax fell 0.74 percent to 7,430.24.

Madrid’s IBEX was 1.26 percent lower to 14,124.8, while the CAC-40 was down 2.08 percent to 5,474.17.

Banks saw substantial declines, with BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) in the biggest drop on the CAC-40, falling 3.36 percent to €75.86.

Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) dropped 2.88 percent to €116.54, while Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) was 2.81 percent lower to €26.97.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) was down 1.7 percent to €90.05, its lowest level in nearly a year.

Other decliners included engineering group Siemens (FWB: SIE; NYSE: SI), which fell 1.91 percent to €88.94 in advance of a meeting between German and US investigators in regard to a corruption probe at the company.

Insurer Axa (Euronext: CS; NYSE: AXA) dropped 3.05 percent to €28.90, while builder Vinci (Euronext: DG) was 2.99 percent lower to €50.32.

Airlines were mixed, with Lufthansa (FWB: LHA) up 0.29 percent to €20.64 but Air France down 3.13 percent to €28.52.

Media group Lagardere (Euronext: MMB) was the only gainer on the CAC-40 as it added 0.8 percent to €57.87.

Utilities were higher in Frankfurt. RWE (FWB: RWE) was up 0.37 percent to €80.65, while Eon was 1.2 percent higher to €119.87 for the biggest gain on the Dax.

European markets were mostly higher, but the Dax dropped 0.06 percent to 7,507.27 in Frankfurt.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.34 percent.

In Madrid, IBEX was up 0.29 percent to 14,334.4 while the Paris CAC-40 gained 0.83 percent to 5,569.38.

Banks and other financials service groups saw declines on the session.

Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) fell 0.11 percent to €27.49, while Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) was down 0.33 percent to €119.24, Dexia (Euronext: DEXB; Euronext: DX) dropped 0.5 percent to €19.86 and BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) was down 0.88 percent to €77.71 for the worst performance on the CAC-40.

Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) was 1.01 percent lower to €29.40.

Insurer Allianz (FWB: ALV; NYSE: AZ) fell 0.92 percent to €157.22, while financial planner MLP (FWB: MLPG) had the worst day on the Dax with a decline of 2.67 percent to €12.02.

Truck manufacturer Man (FWB: EDF1) was the best performer on the Dax, adding 4.46 percent to €103.59.

Elsewhere in motor vehicle manufacturing, Peugeot (Euronext: UG; OTC: PEUGY) gained 1.55 percent to €61.11.

Other gainers included cement maker Lafarge, which was up 1.42 percent to €115.09, helped by a US Commerce Department report that showed new home sales gained 2.8 percent in July over the previous month.

In the oil sector, Total (Euronext: FP; NYSE: TOT) added 1.39 percent to €54.14 and Saipem (ISE: SPM) gained 3.9 percent to €26.33 as crude oil prices saw gains.

European equities markets saw gains on Monday.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 0.54 percent higher to 1,481.43, with Madrid’s IBEX adding 0.22 percent to 14,269.1, the Dax up 0.4 percent to 7,407.53 in Frankfurt, and the Paris CAC-40 gaining 0.67 percent to 5,399.38.

Utilities were mostly higher.

The exception was RWE (FWB: RWE), which fell 1.2 percent to €80.72 in Frankfurt.

In Spain, Iberdrola (IBEX-35: IBE) added 0.6 percent to €39.27.

Among Paris-listed utilities Suez (Euronext: SZE; NYSE: SZE) was 1.56 percent higher to €37.65 and EDF (Euronext: EEN) was 2.18 percent higher to €70.87, while power generator Alstom (Euronext: ALO) had the best day on the CAC-40 with a gain of 3.54 percent to €122.37.

The telecommunications sector was also higher.

Spain’s Telefonica (IBEX-35: TEF; Euronext: TEF; NYSE: TEF; LSE: TDE; FWB: TEF; TYO: 9481) was 0.4 percent higher to €17.43 on the news that its O2 unit in German will drop its Internet services fee to a flat monthly rate.

Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext: ALU; NYSE: ALU; TYO: 6687) was up 1.81 percent to €7.87, while Deutsche Telekom (FWB: DTE; NYSE: DT; LSE: DEU; TYO: 9496) gained 2.12 percent to €13.45. The steel sector made gains.

ThyssenKrupp (FWB: TKA; LSE: THK) gained 2.05 percent to €40.88, while Mittal Steel (Euronext: MT; NYSE: MT) was 3.43 percent higher to €41.28.

Banks were mixed.

While HypoVereinsbank (FWB: HVM) was 1.1 percent higher to €40.21, Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) was the worst performer on the Dax with a drop of 1.45 percent to €93.30.

On the CAC-40, Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) fell 0.18 percent to €117.95.

The worst performance on the session on the CAC-40, however, came from Air France (Euronext: AF; NYSE: AKH), which fell 0.8 percent to €27.30.

Deutsche Boerse (FWB: DB1) had the best day on the Dax with a gain of 3.51 percent to €79.75.

European markets were higher on Friday after the US Federal Reserve cut the discount rate at which the Fed lends money to banks from 6.25 percent to 5.75 percent.

While the Fed’s move didn’t affect the benchmark interest rate, which remained at 5.25 percent, the announcement that came with the discount rate cut said that risks to growth have increased.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 2.44 percent to 1,475.99, while the Dax gained 1.49 percent to 7,378.29 in Frankfurt, the Paris CAC-40 was up 1.86 percent to 5,363.63 and Madrid’s IBEX was 2.21 percent higher to 14,288.7.

Banks saw major gains.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) added 2.49 percent to €94.93, while Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) gained 3.73 percent to €27.28 and Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) was up 3.76 percent to €118.16.

Deutsche Postbank (FWB: DBP) was 3.9 percent higher to €54.

Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) was the best performer on the Dax with a gain of 4.05 percent to €30.16, while BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) added 4.73 percent to €78.20.

Insurers were higher as well.

Allianz (FWB: ALV; NYSE: AZ) was up 3.53 percent to €158.51, while Axa (Euronext: CS; NYSE: AXA) gained 4.46 percent to €29.02.

Other gainers were in the utilities sector, where Suez (Euronext: SZE; NSYE: SZE) was up 2.49 percent to €37.07 and RWE (FWB: RWE) was 1.78 percent higher to €82.13.

The biggest decliner on the CAC-40 was aerospace group EADS (Euronext: EAD; FWB: EAD) dropped 2.56 percent to €19.80 on reports that a German engineering group could be interested in buying some plants that EADS is offering for sale as part of its effort to restructure.

Europe’s equities markets were mostly lower on Wednesday.

The exception was Frankfurt’s Dax, which added 0.28 percent to 7,445.9.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 fell 0.08 percent to 1,493.42.

In Madrid, the IBEX dropped 0.18 percent to 14,527.6, while the Paris CAC-40 was 0.66 percent lower to 5,442.72.

Banks were mostly lower, again the exception coming in Germany where Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) added 0.47 percent to €29.67. UBS (SWX: USBN; NYSE: UBS; TYO: 8657) dropped 0.4 percent to SFr63.25 after Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) cut the Swiss bank’s target share price from SFr90 to SFr80 but reconfirmed its “buy” recommendation.

Deutsche Bank, in turn, had its recommendation cut from “buy” to “neutral” by Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER; TYO: 8675), sending the German bank 1 percent lower to €93.43.

Among French banks BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) fell 1.45 percent to €77.05, while Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) was down 2.29 percent to €116.27.

Insurers also saw declines.

Allianz (FWB: ALV; NYSE: AZ) dropped 1 percent to €154.23, while AXA (Euronext: CS; NYSE: AXA) was 1.2 percent lower to €28.49 after Credit Suisse (SWX: SCGN; NYSE: CS) cut its recommendation from “outperform” to “neutral”.

The best performance on the Dax came from drug and chemicals group Bayer (FWB: BAY; NYSE: BAY; TYO: 4863), which added 5.49 percent to €55.07 on the possibility that Novartis (NYSE: NVS) might offer for the company.

Officials of both Bayer and Novartis declined to comment on the rumors.

Stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse (FWB: DB1) had the worst day on the Dax as it dropped 2.66 percent to €80.54.

IT group Cap Gemini (Euronext: CAP) had the best day on the CAC-40, adding 4.04 percent to €45.63, while the worst performer on the 40 was Air France (Euronext: AF; NSYE: AKH) with a 2.74 percent decline to €28.70.

On the other hand, Lufthansa (FWB: LHA) gained 1.56 percent to €20.21.

France Telecom (Euronext: FTE; NYSE: FTE) added 1.26 percent to €20.90 on rumors that it has won the license to sell Apple’s (NAS: AAPL; LSE: ACP; FWB: APC) iPhone in France.

European markets saw losses on Tuesday, led by declines in banks that are still beset by problems in the credit market.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 1.28 percent lower to 1,493.85.

In Frankfurt the Dax dropped 0.66 percent to 7,425.07, while the WIBEX was down 1.21 percent to 14,553.1 in Madrid and the Paris CAC-40 fell 1.63 percent to 5,478.66.

The banking sector was led lower as UBS (SWX: UBSN; NYSE: UBS;j TYO: 8657) warned that earnings by investment banks would be affected by recent market volatility in the second half.

While the Swiss bank reported better than anticipated results in the second quarter, it said that if current conditions persist its second half could be weak.

After its warning, UBS dropped 3.9 percent to SFr63.50.

Banks were the three biggest losers of the session on the CAC-40.

Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) fell 2.77 percent to €27.03, while BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) was 3.48 percent lower to €78.18 and Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) dropped 4.59 percent to €119.00.

Spanish bank Banco Santander (IBEX-35: SAN; LSE: BNC; NYSE: STD) was 1.7 percent lower to €13.52.

In Frankfurt, meanwhile, Commerzbank (FWB: CBK) was down 1.47 percent to €29.37, while Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NSYE: DB) fell 2.9 percent to €94.33.

The biggest loser on the Dax, however, was Fresenius Medical Care (FWB: FREG), which was down 2.99 percent to €35.12.

Steelmaker ThyssenKrupp (FWB: TK; LSE: THK) was the best performer on the Dax as it added 2.22 percent to €40.34 on an upgrade from “neutral” to “outperform” from Credit Suisse (SWX: CSGN; NYSE: CS), which also raised the steel group’s target share price from €42 to €47.

There were only four gainers on the day on the CAC-40, with hotels operator Accor (Euronext: AC) leading the way with a gain of 0.69 percent to €59.44.

The semiconductors sector was higher, with STMicroelectronics (Euronext: STM; NYSE: STM) 0.16 percent higher to €12.60 and Infineon (FWB: IFX; NYSE: IFX) up 0.45 percent to €11.17.

European markets lost substantial ground Friday, with the FTSE Eurofirst 300 down 2.86 percent to 1,482.14.

The Dax dropped 1.48 percent to 7,343.26 in Frankfurt, while the Paris CAC-40 fell 3.13 percent to 5,448.63 and had no gainers on the day.

In Madrid the IBEX was 2.59 percent lower to 14,453.9.

The financial services sector saw declines after the European Central Bank added to Thursday’s injection of €94.8 billion in extra cash into the financial system with another contribution of €61 billion, with indications that it could add more cash to the system over the weekend.

Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) dropped 3.46 percent to €95.18, while BNP Paribas (Euronext: BNP; TYO: 8665) was 4.36 percent lower to €78.97 and Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) fell 5 percent to €122.20.

The steel sector was mixed.

While ThyssenKrupp (FWB: TKA; LSE: THK) was 0.37 percent higher to €38.10 in Frankfurt, Mittal Steel (Euronext: MT; NYSE: MT) dropped 5.42 percent to €41.92 on fears that the troubled economy could lead to declines in demand.

Airlines were also down on the session as Lufthansa (FWB: LHA) dropped 3.78 percent to €19.11 and Air France (Euronext: AF; NYSE: AKH) fell 5.43 percent to €28.56.

The car and truck manufacturing sector was mixed on the session as well, with Volkswagen (FWB: VOW; OTC: VLKAY) leading the Dax for the second day in a row as it added 1.79 percent to €143.87.

On the other hand, Renault (Euronext: RNO) fell 3.84 percent to €95.13, while truck maker Man (FWB: EDF1) was the biggest loser on the Dax with a decline of 4.2 percent to €94.87.

Power generator Alstom (Euronext: ALO) was the worst performer on the CAC-40 as it dropped 7.31 percent to €124.10.

The semiconductors sector was lower, as well. Infineon (FWB: IFX; NYSE: IFX) fell 4.1 percent to €10.75, while STMicroelectronics (Euronext: STM; NSYE: STM) was 4.2 percent lower to €12.56.