European stocks ended mixed this evening, with the Dublin market boosted by takeover speculation surrounding pharmaceutical company Elan.
The ISEQ closed up 24 points (1.1%) at 2,182, with Elan closing 15% higher at €5.74 on market talk that Denmark's Lundbeck was lining up a bid. Bank of Ireland closed up three cent at 52 cent as the European Commission approved the Government's cash injection of €3.5 billion into the bank.
London's FTSE closed 25 points higher at 3,925, lifted by banks and mining stocks. Barclays added 13% to 140p. The Dax in Frankfurt rose by 0.9% to 4,259 while the CAC in Paris ended virtually unchanged at 2,892.
On Wall Street, strong results from US electronics retailer Best Buy lifted the mood. The Dow Jones was up 155 points (2%) at 7,904, while the Nasdaq gained 45 points (2.9%) to 1,574. Earlier, Japan's Nikkei index jumped 156 points (1.8%) to close at 8,636, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street.
