Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 50 and Stoxx 600 indexes recorded their third week of gains as companies including Nokia Oyj and Royal Philips Electronics NV reported earnings that surpassed analyst forecasts.
The Stoxx 50 climbed 2.2 percent in the week, led by insurers such as Allianz AG, Aegon NV and Swiss Life. The Stoxx 600 had a four-day advance of 2.2 percent. Most European markets closed on Friday for a national holiday and will be also be closed on Monday.
Some investors said this week's earnings reports indicate that the war in Iraq hasn't curbed economic and profit growth as much as anticipated, and that efforts by companies to cut costs and boost revenue are paying off.
"The earnings were good," said Peter Braendle, a fund manager at Swissca Portfolio Management in Zurich, which oversees US$32 billion of assets. "It doesn't mean the future is bright, but at least they didn't get any worse."
Benchmark indexes rose in nine of the 15 Western European markets that were open on Thursday. Exchanges in Denmark and Norway were closed.
Germany's DAX Index gained 6.1 percent in the past four sessions. France's CAC 40 Index and the UK's FTSE 100 Index both advanced 2.1 percent.
June futures on the Euro Stoxx 50 Index of companies based in the 12 countries sharing the euro climbed 2.1 percent to 2305. The underlying index rose 1.3 percent to 2,324.27.
Nokia, the world's largest maker of mobile phones, jumped 7.2 percent to 14.76 euros on Thursday, taking its gain for the week to 9.7 percent. Net income climbed 13 percent to 977 million euros (US$1.1 billion), more than a forecast of 929 million euros from analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.
The Finnish company said its mobile-phone operating margin, or operating profit as a percentage of sales, widened to 24 percent from 22 percent in the period.
"Nokia beat expectations through better-than-expected handset profitability," Richard Windsor, an analyst at Nomura International Plc, wrote in a note to investors. "Nokia continues to be strong in China and exceptionally strong in Europe."
The Stoxx 600 technology index, which includes Nokia, was the biggest percentage gainer this week, adding 8.1 percent.
SAP AG, the world's largest maker of business-management software, drove gains after saying first-quarter profit almost tripled to 186 million euros from a year earlier as it cut costs and gained business from US rivals in a shrinking market. SAP's products help manage tasks such as accounting for customers including Nestle SA and DaimlerChrysler AG. The shares had a weekly gain of 15 percent to 94.10 euros.
Philips, Europe's largest maker of consumer electronics, added 4.2 percent in the four-day week. The Dutch company on Tuesday reported a first-quarter net loss of 69 million euros, less than the average 108 million-euro loss forecast by analysts in a Bloomberg News survey. Philips also repeated its forecast for 2003 operating profit.
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