The German stock market closed firmer, helped by selected demand for chemical stocks and a turn round in DAX futures prices. Post bourse trade saw US investors flock to the market, chiefly to chemical stocks, which pushed the IBIS Dax index up to 2,472.55 by the end of the day.

Paris CAC-40: 1965.02 (+14.90) French shares finished higher on the back of Wall Street gains - ahead of the New York opening they had languished in negative territory. Operators pointed to a technical fault which incorrectly showed a block of 500,000 Carrefour shares instead of 50,000 shares. Milan MIBTEL: 9408 (-11) Italian shares ended mostly lower after a quiet, directionless session with most investors sidelined while only Telecom Italia and Snia generated any buying interest. Telecom Italia, which closed 2.3 per cent higher at 2,450 lire, was boosted by a flurry of interest on expectations that the group would announce good 1995 results.