Telecom shares are among top gainers

Eurostoxx 50: 2,945.42 (+14.00) Frankfurt DAX: 7,164.75 (+2.82) Paris CAC: 4,015.91 (+25.50)EUROPEAN SHARES ended higher yesterday as a fall in crude oil prices eased concerns about the pace of global economic recovery, although technicals suggest short-term gains could be limited.

A jump in Deutsche Telekom on renewed talk that the company and Sprint Nextel may be in discussions to combine their operations in the US boosted telecom shares. Deutsche Telekom advancing 4 per cent.

Greek shares fell 3.8 per cent, while the banking index dropped 6.3 per cent. National Bank and EFG Eurobank fell 6.8 per cent and 6.1 per cent respectively, a day after Moody’s cut Greece’s credit rating by three notches, raising the spectre of a debt restructuring.

“There are signals in place to suggest that the market has reached a short-term top,” said Bill McNamara, technical analyst at Charles Stanley.

Telecom shares were among the top gainers, helped by merger talk and on an upbeat note from Morgan Stanley, which raised its overall stance on telecoms services to “attractive”.

Miners topped the decliners’ list as nickel prices fell more than 2 per cent, although copper recovered after earlier losses. Investors kept an eye on crude, which could jump further on unrest in the Arab world.

Andritz jumped 4.6 per cent to €64.38. The Austrian maker of machines for the paper and steel industries reported full-year net income of €179.6 million, beating analysts’ estimates. Andritz also forecast that its 2011 sales will “increase substantially compared to 2010” and that its profit will rise.

Aegon rose 1.4 per cent to €5.60, erasing Monday’s decline, after Scor was said to be in talks to buy the Dutch insurer’s Transamerica Reinsurance unit, according to four people with knowledge of the matter.

Scor dropped 2.2 per cent to €20.61 as the company said catastrophes in Australia and New Zealand would cost it a total €200 million, net of retrocession.

Lundin Petroleum surged 4.4 per cent to 83.10 kronor after BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research upgraded the company to “buy” from “sell”.

Wacker Chemie climbed 2.9 per cent to €138.40 as UBS AG lifted its recommendation on the chemicals company to “buy” from “neutral”. – (Reuters/Bloomberg)