Stocks stay strong on last day without US trading

Steady growth, telecom stocks lead...

European markets remained stable this morning in their fourth session without US guidance, with telecom stocks leading the gains. Strong performances overnight from Tokyo saw the markets rally at opening. By 10.00(BST) the FTSE had lost 0.2 per cent on earlier gains and Frankfurt's Dax was down 0.10 per cent. But the CAC 40 in Paris continued to rise adding 0.22 per cent and London's TechMark rose 0.24 per cent. Investors turned to telecom shares with Nokia and Sonera initially jumping over two per cent. Alcatel rose 0.16 per cent and Deutsche Telekom was up 2.29 per cent. France Telecom dropped 0.10 per cent on opening gains. Stocks are expected to take a temporary dive on Monday as US markets reopen.