European equity markets lost much of their early gains after the stronger-than-expected jobs data from the US sparked fresh fears about inflationary pressures. The FTSE Eurobloc 100 index closed 3.70 higher at 1,016.86. The FTSE Eurotop 100 put on 4.00 to 2,834.36 while the broader FTSE Eurotop 300 settled 3.34 ahead at 1,239.89.
Stockholm was one of Europe's better performers. A halt was called to four days of losses as truck and bus maker Scania soared 25 per cent after rival Volvo bought a majority stake in the company.
The general index swept to an early high of 3,722.86 before gains were pared. By the close, the index was 38.56 higher at 3,689.49. Scania jumped SKr61 to SKr305 after Volvo achieved a long-held aim by striking a deal with Scania's main shareholder, Investor. Volvo dropped SKr21 to SKr223 while Investor put on SKr4.50 to SKr98. The market's advance was also spurred by a SKr24 rise to SKr664 in the locally quoted shares of Finland's Nokia and a SKr4.50 rise to SKr252.50 in Ericsson.
Frankfurt recovered from a brief pullback in the face of the US jobs data and the Xetra Dax index finished 32.02 higher at 5,010.47.
Deutsche Telekom pared early gains to close 15 cents easier at €37.50 as the market questioned whether the price tag for the British mobile telephone company, One2One, was too high.
MAN gained an early 6 per cent on news of the Volvo-Scania plan. The deal has come after months of speculation about consolidation in the sector and MAN has been widely seen as a potential target. MAN shares finished €1.06 higher at €30.31.
Mannesmann jumped €3.60 to €129, boosted by the continuing consolidation in the telecoms sector and rebounding from Thursday's sharp losses after the company warned that full-year profits would fall.
Paris suffered another decline despite a rally in selected technology and telecommunications stocks. The CAC-40 index closed 17.06 or 0.4 per cent down at 4,223.64.
STMicroelectronics, the semiconductor maker, was the top gainer, jumping €2.50 or 4.1 per cent to €63.80 after Thursday's sell-off. France Telecom rebounded less spectacularly, closing 10 cents or 0.2 per cent up at €64.10 after Morgan Stanley Dean Witter resumed coverage of the stock with an "outperform" rating and a price target of €80.
Amsterdam ended more than 1 per cent higher in volatile trading. The AEX index finished up 6.08 or 1.1 per cent at 535.10. Wolters Kluwer, the publisher, recovered from its 5 per cent tumble on Thursday. It closed €3.10 or 10.5 per cent higher at €32.50 after it revealed new profits targets at an analysts' meeting.
