Investors in Paris brushed aside some bad news on the corporate front to send the market to its 33rd record close of 1999.
France Telecom, the CAC-40's largest stock, closed down €1.60 at €115.90 after news that KPN Telecom, the Dutch group, wants a stake in E-Plus of Germany. This may foil France Telecom's €9.1 billion bid for the German company.
Aerospatiale-Matra fell €1.20 to €21.00, a 5 per cent slide, after Alcatel's unit Skybridge confirmed a deal with Boeing to launch its satellites.
High-tecnology stocks again grabbed the limelight. STMicroelectronics surged 6 per cent or €8 to €141, while Cap Gemini rose 7 per cent or €14.2 to €216.20.
Frankfurt ended little changed after steady afternoon selling in the big insurance and motor stocks. The Xetra DAX index ended up 2.47 at 6,118.06.
Utilities Viag and Veba moved in opposite directions after the merger partners revised the terms of their planned merger. Viag, which is to gain 35.5 per cent of the new entity against 33 per cent under the initial deal, rose 95 cents to €16.55. Veba shed €1.78 at €43.72.
Fallers included Allianz and Munich Re, off €3.38 at €287.62 and €3.10 at €204 respectively. In motors, DaimlerChrysler shed €1.25 at €65.55 while Volkswagen lost €1.34 at €48.01.
Amsterdam closed at a record high after gaining 7.53 to 618.08 on the AEX index. Royal Dutch rose €1.92 to €56.82 after brokers turned positive on oil stocks after a period of relative underperformance for the sector. Commerzbank upgraded Royal Dutch from "sell" to "hold".
News that it might join forces with BellSouth of the US and take a stake in German mobile phone group E-Plus, sent telecoms leader KPN up €5.55 to €68.15, a gain of 8.9 per cent.
Zurich was flat, calling a halt to three days on the slide, but some traders expressed disappointment that there had not been a strong rebound. The SMI index finished 6.3 higher at 7,342.8.
Milan edged lower in afternoon trade although heavily traded telecom stocks consolidated recent sharp gains. The Mibtel index turned back from Wednesday's record high to close 20 easier at 26,258.
