Technology and telecoms stocks swung back upwards following Friday's tumbles, adding 5 per cent or more to the top stocks such as Nokia and Deutsche Telekom.

Following the lead of US markets, which consolidated their more positive tone, the TMTs spearheaded a recovery which extended to all sectors. However, analysts described it as largely a technical bounce.

Nokia rose 5.8 per cent to €14.04. Yesterday it unveiled new mobiles with picture messaging facilities which it hopes will help restore growth to handset sales. Nokia last week halved its sales forecast for the second quarter and its shares touched a 3½-year low.

Other techs shared in the better sentiment. Alcatel was up 4.7 per cent to €10.29, STMicroelectronics rose 6 per cent to €24.95 and ASML rose 4.9 per cent to €16.82.

However, Ericsson, which also unveiled new mobile models, resumed its downward trend, falling 3.3 per cent to SKr17.40.

In telecoms, the rule was the bigger the stock, the bigger the rise. The best risers were Deutsche Telekom, which rose 7.3 per cent to €10.54, and France Telecom, which rose 6.1 per cent to €16.81.

The only falling telecom was the Greek stock OTE, which slipped 0.1 per cent to €16.48. Last week, the Greek government placed another 8 per cent of the shares with institutions, which put downward pressure on the price. KPNQwest, the battered hulk of a telecom stock, shed €0.03 to €0.10, a fall of more than 20 per cent, as news emerged that two consortia were bidding for the bulk of the network. KPNQwest is in receivership and trustees are seeking buyers for its assets.

Switzerland's Syngenta, the world's largest agrochemicals group, performed strongly putting on 3.3 per cent to €94.80, escaping the backlash from last week's profits warning from rival Monsanto in the US.