Europe's FTSEurofirst 300 index jumped 2.1 percent to 1,198.6 points on Monday, thanks to a flurry of takeover activity, strong oil and banking earnings and a sharp opening on Wall Street, Reuters reported. The index rose 24.6 points and was on course for its biggest one-day points gain since April 7, 2003, when bourses were buoyed by hopes the Iraq War would end quickly. European shares had suffered through late October as some weaker than expected earnings and interest rate fears hurt. "I think most people thought the market fall was somewhat overdone and when you've got bid interest coming in like this it's just natural," said Stuart Fraser at private client stockbroker Brewin Dolphin. Among domestic indexes, France's CAC 40 was Europe's best performer, rising 2.3 percent, with Germany's DAX up 2 percent and Britain's FTSE 100 1.9 percent firmer. British mobile telecoms network operator O2 was Europe's top blue-chip gainer, surging 25 percent after Telefonica's 17.7-billion-pound ($31.6-billion) offer. Dutch peer KPN was 5 percent higher after saying it was not planning a counter-bid. UK building materials firm Hanson rose after mid-cap British glassmaker Pilkington shot up following an approach from Nippon Sheet Glass. British catering firm Compass also added 5 percent after weekend press reports of further private equity interest. Dutch bank ABN AMRO and Norwegian oil firm Statoil also rose strongly on robust earnings, further boosting indexes as they forced sector peers higher.
