Sponsored by BNP Paribas

Disappointing results from telecom equipment heavyweight Ericsson (ERICb.ST) and profit-taking after a recent strong run helped send European shares lower around midday on Thursday.

News, details on bond issues in the European markets on Wednesday:

European shares fell for a second day on Wednesday, with financial stocks taking most points off the leading index after Deutsche Bank unexpectedly released quarterly figures that knocked its stock.

European shares fell in afternoon trading on Tuesday after data showed new construction of U.S. homes rose by less than expected in September.

European shares bounced back on Monday to hover near last week's 12-month highs, with banks, food producers and drugmakers leading the advance ahead of more earnings results from major companies such as Apple (AAPL.O).

European equities slipped from one-year highs on Friday as General Electric (GE.N) and Bank of America (BAC.N) results disappointed and hurt momentum that was built after IBM (IBM.N) and Google (GOOG.O) earnings figures.

News, details on bond issues in the European markets on Friday:

Travel reservations giant Amadeus has hired a trio of banks as global bookrunners for a planned initial public offering (IPO) next year, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

Bank of America-Merrill Lynch has hired Tan Chong Lee, who was last at Goldman Sachs, as its head of Southeast Asia investment banking, two sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

World stocks fell from this week's one-year high on Tuesday as investors grew cautious ahead of major third-quarter U.S. corporate earnings, while risk-hungry investors drove the Australian dollar to a 14-month peak.

European shares were lower at midday on Wednesday after sharp gains in the previous session on global economic recovery hopes, with banking and industrial engineering shares leading the decline.

The dollar fell broadly Tuesday while stocks rose after Australia's interest rate rise, the first in a G20 economy in more than a year, boosted confidence the global economic recovery is on track and others may follow.

European shares rose in early trade on Tuesday, adding to gains in the previous session as further evidence of global economic recovery boosted demand for riskier assets like equities.

European shares hit a four-week low on Friday, extending the previous day's sharp losses, with investors anxious before key U.S. jobs figures after data this week raised doubt about the strength of economic recovery.

The London Stock Exchange said it has entered into exclusive talks with low-cost trading platform Turquoise Trading Ltd., as rising competition forces trading houses to consolidate.

Oil rose above $67 per barrel on Wednesday, buoyed by a fall in the dollar and higher share prices, but gains were limited by an expected increases in U.S. oil inventories.

Oil rose toward $68 per barrel on Wednesday, buoyed by a fall in the dollar against major currencies at the end of the financial quarter, with the market also awaiting key U.S. oil data later in the day.

The Netherlands is looking into options to sell Fortis Bank Nederland assets to French bank BNP Paribas as part of a merger remedy ordered by the European Commission, a source said on Tuesday.

European shares dipped on Tuesday after the previous session's sharp gains, dragged lower by commodity stocks, but financials offered support after BNP Paribas raised capital to shake off government influence.

World stocks edged higher while the dollar steadied on Tuesday as BNP Paribas' move to pay back state financial support and growing corporate takeover activity bolstered confidence about economic recovery.

BNP Paribas, France's biggest bank by market capitalization, on Tuesday joined the rush to pay back governments for their financial support during the credit crisis.

Thomson Reuters on Friday released the top government-guaranteed bond underwriters for the third quarter of 2009 as of Thursday, September 24.

Former Morgan Stanley managing director Du Jun was sentenced to a maximum seven years in jail on Friday after a district court found him guilty of insider trading in the city's highest-profile case of its kind.

BNP Paribas, France's largest bank, is close to selling its stake in ABN AMRO TEDA Fund Management Co in China, in a step toward complying with Chinese mutual fund regulations.

France's BNP Paribas and Belgian insurer Fortis will take a majority stake in the non-life insurance unit of Italy's UBI Banca, the buyers announced on Thursday.

Oil eased to around $71 a barrel on Wednesday after a bigger-than-forecast rise in U.S. fuel stocks offset positive expectations for the world economy that spurred other markets higher.

Oil eased below $71 a barrel on Wednesday after a higher-than-forecast rise in U.S. fuel stocks offset positive expectations for the world economy that spurred other markets higher.

Former Morgan Stanley managing director Du Jun was found guilty of insider trading by a Hong Kong court on Thursday, in the city's highest-profile insider trading case.

Oil prices slipped on Thursday, settling just under $68 a barrel as disappointing news from the labor market outweighed economic optimism from data showing that the U.S. service sector and retail sales improved.