[R]6:30AM European bourses buoyed by Nokia and Siemens merger deal.[/R]
European stocks were higher in early trade on Monday. The FTSE 100 in London climbed 1.1% to 5,658.1, the Xetra Dax in Frankfurt was up 1.5% to 5,458.39 and the CAC-40 in Paris gained 4,751.03. In other news from the corporate front, Vinci was the worst faller on the Eurofirst 300, losing 2.7%, after Veolia Environnement, the French utility, abandoned its plan for a merger with the French construction and concessions group. Veolia, was up 4.1%, yielded to investors’ worried over a costly bid battle, saying conditions did not exist for a friendly deal.

Oil prices declined Monday, but steadied at the $69 level amid worries over Iran''s nuclear ambitions, and how that might impact oil supplies. Light, sweet crude for July delivery dropped 37 cents to $69.51 a barrel. Gold bullion opened Monday at a bid price of $570.60 a troy ounce, down from $573.50 late Friday. The euro slipped against the dollar on Monday on data posted late last week showing the U.S. trade deficit narrowed for the first three months of the year. The euro bought $1.2597, down from $1.2635 in New York on Friday. The British pound also slipped to $1.8445 from $1.8503 at the end of last week. The dollar also rose against the Japanese currency, purchasing 115.56 yen, up from 115.09.