Around the World's Markets: Frankfurt

THE STOCK MARKET continued its rally in the wake of Oskar Lafontaine's resignation, closing up nearly 1 per cent. The Xetra DAX index rose 47.70 points to end at 5,090.93.

Lufthansa, the national airline, jumped 4.5 per cent on news that it is to bid for a stake in Thai Airways, while Preussag jumped 4.5 per cent as it received the green light to sell 50 per cent of its shipbuilding unit to Deutsche Babcock. Merger activity between the French banks rippled across the border, lifting Deutsche Bank by 3.4 per cent.