(by Mark Riley)

The FTSE Eurotop 300 gained 0.7 per cent to 971.93 with Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax up 0.9 per cent to 3,846.51 and the Paris CAC-40 adding 0.8 per cent to 3,593.36. The FTSE 100 in London rose 0.7 per cent to 4,355.0.

Renault jumped 5.6 percent to 64.65 euros. The French company said profit beat estimates and raised its full-year earnings forecast. First-half net income grew 29 percent to 1.51 billion euros ($1.8 billion), beating the 1.45 billion-euro median estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.

Peugeot, France’s No. 1 carmaker, rose 2.5 percent to 47.25 euros. The company said yesterday it may raise its earnings outlook for this year as sales increase. Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Merrill Lynch & Co. were among brokerages boosting their profit estimates for Peugeot today.

DaimlerChrysler, the world’s fifth-largest carmaker, added 1.6 percent to 37.13 euros. The company is scheduled to report quarterly earnings tomorrow. Valeo SA, Europe’s third-largest car parts maker, rose 3.4 percent to 34.35 euros.

Shares of BMW rose 2 per cent to 36.34 euros.

Shares of Unilever dropped 3.6 percent to 488.5 pence in London and 3.7 percent to 51.1 euros in Amsterdam. Second-quarter sales of its 400 top brands were unchanged, lagging analysts’ estimates of a 2.2 percent gain.