Shares in technology companies were mostly lower yesterday, with impending results from Intel and IBM making investors edgy.

Weakness was especially apparent among chip-makers, which were pulled down by an early 10 per cent fall in the Philadelphia semiconductor index. UBS Warburg's technology team cut its forecast for the average selling price of D-Ram chips this year by 45 per cent.

Franco-Italian STMicroelectronics fell 5.8 per cent to €50.35 and Germany's Infineon was down 6.3 per cent to €46.40. Chip equipment-maker ASM Lithography fell 12 per cent to €29.65, an 11-month low.

Electronics companies were also weak, with Siemens down 4.5 per cent to €138 and Philips down 5.7 per cent to €42.90, in spite of reporting third-quarter earnings in line with expectations.

Telecoms companies lost ground in the afternoon as the Nasdaq began to slide. Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom both ended Telefonica was down 2.8 per cent at €20.80 and KPN fell 3.9 per cent to €21.14. The best performer was French telecoms, media and construction group Bouygues, which rose 7.5 per cent to €51 after the broker CAI Cheuvreux raised its recommendation from "underperform" to "outperform" with a price target of €60.

Man pushed ahead strongly in an otherwise mixed motor sector. The truck-maker's quarterly sales and orders figures sent the stock up €1.30 to €30.13 and went some way towards cushioning concerns about a fuel cost-driven slowdown for demand. Motor equipment group Valeo, which put out a warning of shrinking operating margins earlier this year, eased two cents to €45 ahead of third-quarter results due after market hours.

Construction stocks found favour as the broad sector-churning that has dominated investment direction in recent weeks laid increasing emphasis on older economy stalwarts.

Much of the drive for the sector came from Bouygues, which is as much a telecoms group as a pure builder. More conventional sector components like Lafarge and Saint Gobain added €1.20 to €76.40 and €1.70 to €144.