LONDON: Europe's main stock markets were mixed Wednesday as dealers reacted to easier oil prices and a batch of regional company activity, including a takeover and annual earnings.
London's FTSE 100 index of top shares fell 0.40 percent to 5,950.94 points late morning. Frankfurt's DAX 30 rose 0.44 percent to 7,196.33 points and the Paris CAC 40 gained 0.21 percent to 4,026.45 near the mid-stage.
The Stoxx 50 index of leading eurozone companies added 0.34 percent to 2,955.87 points.
"The theme ... has been traders maintaining an eye on the price of crude oil and the Portuguese bond auction," said Joshua Raymond, an analyst at London trading group City Index.
"Traders continue to trade sensitively to any increase in the price of crude oil whilst the Portuguese bond auction is another opportunity for the market to gauge investor confidence in the indebted country."
World oil prices were also mixed on Wednesday as traders tracked the supply situation amid ongoing unrest in crude oil producer and exporter Libya, and as they awaited energy inventory data in the United States.
In London morning trade, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in April rose 69 cents to $113.75 a barrel. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for April, fell 22 cents to $104.80.
Portugal meanwhile sold the maximum intended 1.0 billion euros of a two-and-a-half-year government bond at an auction on Wednesday but had to pay much higher rates to get its money.
In company news, German automaker Daimler and Britain's Rolls-Royce announced plans to take over Tognum, a German manufacturer of motors and turbines they want to make into a world leader.
They will create a "50:50 joint venture company" to make the bid, offering 24 euros ($33.36) for each Tognum share, and work to make the new entity "a world leading engine systems company".
That price values the company, which would operate in dynamic emerging market economies, at "approximately 3.2 billion euros", the statement added.
Daimler shares showed a gain of 0.66 percent to 49.58 euros on the Frankfurt DAX. Tognum was up by 4.11 percent at 24.17 euros.
In London, Rolls-Royce added 2.83 percent at 617.5 pence.
"Daimler is in positive territory on the back of the news of a joint offer with Rolls-Royce to invest in Tognum," said ETX Capital trader Anita Paluch.
Elsewhere, Prudential jumped 4.15 percent to 743.6 pence, topping the FTSE 100 gainers, after the British insurer said it more than doubled net profits in 2010 to £1.43 billion (1.67 billion euros, $2.31 billion).
In Paris, EADS climbed 2.92 percent to 20.42 euros after Europe's biggest aerospace firm and owner of plane manufacturer Airbus said it returned to profit last year.
-- Dow Jones Newswires contributed to this story --
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