New York shares have swung slightly higher after three days of heavy falls.

I think we still have a lot of problems

James Volk DA Davidson

An encouraging statement from the wireless technology company Qualcomm helped cheer investors.

But James Volk, managing director of equity trading at DA Davidson said: "I think it's more of a technical bounce than anything else."

"I still see no change in the outlook - no growth in the economy, which means there is not going to be growth in earnings.

"I think we still have a lot of problems," he added.

The Dow Jones index of leading shares end up 44 points at 7,986. Over the week it had fallen 3.9%.

A volatile day

London's FTSE 100 experienced some wild swings during the day - at one point it gained and lost 300 points in a matter of minutes.

Stockbroker Tony Craze told BBC News that he understood the problem was caused by a city trader who pressed the wrong button when doing a deal.

"I'm told somebody lost about �100m ($155m) out there today," he said.

Markets throughout Europe wobbled on Friday because of continuing worries about corporate profits, the US economy and a possible war with Iraq.

Another reason for the volatility was that a large number of futures contracts were due to expire - and that always affects share prices.

Germany's Dax index fell below 3,000 for the first time since January 1997 but by the time the markets closed it was 58 points higher at 3,066.

London's FTSE 100 closed 47 points higher at 3,860 but the Paris Cac fell 36 points to 2,891.

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