Frankfurt DAX: 4047.37 (+57.41)

The German market continued to surge in after-hours trading with the IBIS DAX closing up 2.8 per cent on 4113.93. The overnight recovery in the Far East, the strong opening session on Wall Street and the decision of the Bundesbank to hold its repo rate unchanged all contributed to the bullish tone in Frankfurt.

Paris CAC-40: 2921.15 (+115.31)

French shares followed the upward trend on international stock markets and gained more than 3 per cent.

Oils led the advance with Total and Elf attracting buyers ahead of results today and tomorrow respectively.

Milan Mibtel: 14631 (+292)

Italian shares gained almost 2 per cent after the publication of the NAPM figures and the opening gains on Wall Street.

The biggest gains were notched up blue-chip industrials such as Fiat and Telecom Italia, while Mediaset rose more than 3 per cent after an upgrade from Credit Suisse First Boston.