European markets were more subdued after Tuesday's sharp movements, but many technology, media and telecommunication stocks held on to their gains.

Among media companies, a number of shares continued to climb. The Dutch publisher VNU rose 5.4 per cent to €52.85, Thomson Multimedia rose 4.6 per cent to €49 and French broadcaster TF1 added 3.7 per cent to €57.90.

French group Havas Advertising rose almost 10 per cent to €18.15 after its third quarter results showed good sales growth, particularly in North America. Earnings were about 36 per cent higher than last year.

Some telecoms resumed Tuesday's rally too, with Bouygues up 5.9 per cent to €58.25, the best performer on the Paris benchmark index. Finland's Sonera rose 3.8 per cent to €22.90. Investors also waded back into telecoms equipment stocks, with Nokia up 4 per cent to €48.50 and Ericsson up 3.8 per cent to 124 Swedish krona.

Fi System, the French Internet agency, rose 5.5 per cent to €19.36, extending Tuesday's gains. The company recently bought Italian web consultancy Mediaitaly and the stock had been under pressure on Monday after Fi System said it would propose a capital increase.

In the transport sector, German airline Lufthansa said it expects full-year operating profit to rise by 40 per cent compared with a forecast of 15 per cent. Mr Jurgen Weber, chairman, said: "2000 will be one of the best years in the company's history." Its shares were 2.5 per cent higher at €24.82 towards the end of the session.

But the Norwegian airline Braathens fell almost 18 per cent to an all-time low of 21.40 Norwegian krone after the daily newspaper Dagbladet said it was losing out to its bigger rival SAS. Braathens operates mostly within Norway.

The Belgian utility Electrabel fell 2.9 per cent to €247 as the speculative premium on the share disappeared. Its parent group Tractebel, which in turn is owned by Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux of France, has ruled out any merger between the two. Tractebel fell 2 per cent to €169.50 and Suez slipped marginally to €185.90.

Commerzbank edged up just 0.6 per cent to €33.50 in spite of nine-month figures that beat expectations and plans for a radical restructuring in an effort to remain in the big league of European banking. Analysts said that much of the 139 per cent rise in nine month pre-tax profit was the result of the flotation of Comdirect, its Internet broking business.