Brussels - The European Commission on Thursday approved plans by Sweden and Portugal to protect financial institutions from the global credit crunch.

Sweden's plan involves the state providing up to 1,500 billion Swedish kronor (201 billion dollars) in debt guarantees to banks and other lenders.

Portugal's plan envisages similar state guarantees worth 20 billion euros (26 billion dollars).

Both schemes were approved by the European Union executive after they were found to be in line with the bloc's rules on state aid.

But while Sweden's was cleared within just three days of it being notified to the commission, the Portuguese plan had to be negotiated with officials in Brussels over a two-week period.

Frankfurt - European stocks stormed ahead Wednesday on hopes of lower interest rates.

Amid expectations of the US Federal Reserve delivering another hefty cut in borrowing costs Wednesday, Europe's blue-chip Stoxx 50 climbed 7.8 per cent to 2222 after chalking up even bigger gains during the day.

The positive mood was reflected across national bourses with shares in London gaining more than 6 per cent and Paris jumping more than 7 per cent as the afternoon session drew to a close. Stocks in Zurich were up 5.40 per cent.

Frankfurt - European Central Bank (ECB) chief Jean Claude Trichet signalled Monday that the bank's rate-setting council might deliver another cut in borrowing costs at its meeting next month.

"I consider possible that the Governing Council will decrease interest rates once again at its next meeting on November 6," said Trichet in a speech delivered in Madrid and posted on the Frankfurt- based bank's website.

"It is not a certainty, it is a possibility," he said with analysts expecting the ECB to cut borrowing costs again next month by 50 basis points, or half of one per cent.

Frankfurt - European shares staunched early big losses Monday amid renewed hopes about interest rate cuts and after some positive US economic data.

As trading on European stock markets drew to a close, Europe's blue-chip Stoxx 50 was down by 2.0 per cent at 2076 points.

However, with Wall Street swinging between positive and negative territory, the Stoxx 50 index pulled back from steep declines run up in the morning session.

Berlin - The hazard lights are flashing over the European car industry, with leading automakers cutting production and scaling back profit forecasts as the world financial crisis hits vehicle sales.

Less than a week after cutting its earnings forecast again, the giant German auto maker Daimler AG flagged plans Monday to shut down work for about four weeks over Christmas at key plants, including one producing its flagship luxury Mercedes-Benz cars.

Brussels  - The European Commission wants to ban smoking in bars and restaurants across the European Union, officials in Brussels said Monday.

However, discussions on a smoking ban in all of the member states' workplaces are still at the preliminary stage, meaning any new rules are unlikely to be implemented before 2010.