(by Dr. Goldfinger)

FTSE Eurotop 300 index rose 0.3% to 968.76. The main figure in European market today was France’s Renault. The group announced much better-than-expected half-year profits, up 28 per cent thanks mainly to a strong sales performance by its Megane car and an excellent dividend from its 44 per cent owned partner, Nissan.

Adding to the good news, Renault increased its full-year profits target. Renault shares finished the day 5.6 per cent higher at €64.65.

Not far behind came Peugeot, whose shares followed up Tuesday’s 6.3 per cent rise - the day’s best in the Eurotop 300 - with a further 2.9 per cent gain at €47.45, still boosted by the well-received second-quarter results.

The strength of the French auto stocks spilled over into the German sub-sector, which was led higher by BMW, up 2.2 per cent at €36.42, DaimlerChrysler, up 1.6 per cent at €37.12 and Porsche, whose shares added 2.1 per cent to €542.78.

Volkswagen also edged higher, trading 1.5 per cent firmer at €33.66, in spite of news that Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein had lowered its price target to €30 from the previous €31.

In Teliasonera, Sweden provided the best individual performer across European stock markets, its shares racing up 7 per cent to €33.80 after announcing that it plans to distribute 30 to 50 per cent of its net income as dividends and to return an additional SKr30bn to shareholders during 2005-2007.

That news cushioned the effects of poor second-quarter results and a cautious statement on the near-term outlook.

The IT sector took something of a pasting and was dragged down by a fall in shares in ASML Holdings, the Dutch chipmaker, whose stock price dipped 1.1 per cent to €11.16.

Finland’s Nokia, which stunned markets a couple of weeks ago with a shock warning of falling sales and margins, came under fire again and fell 2.5 per cent to €9.40.