A volatile session left Frankfurt within three points of its closing alltime high, with the Xetra DAX index up 43.17 at 6,955.98.
Deutsche Bank rallied strongly, adding €2.95 to €83.55 as sentiment turned positive after weak sessions for the shares. Other banks remained dull, notably Dresdner Bank which slipped €1.45 at €52.50.
Other financials had a better session. Allianz among insurers gained €5.50 to €344 and Munich Re €2 to €284.
DaimlerChrysler jumped on rumours that the group was set to dispose of its non-motor divisions. The shares rose €1.40 to €75.50.
Tech-related stocks pushed higher. Software leader SAP rose €17 to €720 while Mannesmann added €4.10 at €242.
The FTSE Eurobloc index rose 1.1 per cent to 1,338.61 and the FTSE Eurotop 100 index added 0.6 per cent at 3,497.35. The broader FTSE Eurotop 300 index ended 0.6 per cent higher at 1,520.76. Paris recovered most of the ground lost over the past two sessions with the CAC-40 gaining 50.74 at 5,633.24 in busy trading volume.
Canal Plus led the performance charts, rising €12.50 or 9.2 per cent to €148 on confirmation that Lagardere had taken a big stake in the group's satellite offshoot.
Lagardere itself added €4.45 at €67.50. Elsewhere among firm features Schneider gained €3.80 at €78.85 and STMicroelectronics rose €3.00 to €143.
Amsterdam rallied with the AEX index rising 3.81 to 642.21 as investors returned to the buying tack after an absence of two days.
Electronics giant Philips turned round, adding €5.30 at €144.25 as investors took advantage of recent weakness to top up in what is widely seen as a core portfolio stock.
Helsinki rode another Nokia-Sonera wave to a gain of 3.5 per cent, which pushed the Hex general index to its first close over 14,000 since January 4th.
Sonera soared 10 per cent to €64.80, after Wednesday's 7 per cent gains, boosted by another alliance for its data encryption business.
Nokia added 3.3 per cent to €171.40 after the day's US data raised hopes that the Fed will only raise interest rates by 25 basis points in February. The benchmark Hex index closed with a gain of 471.60 at 14,063.55.
