Aventis, the world's third-largest drugmaker, reported a forecast-topping 18 percent rise in net profit in its first year post-merger. A forecast for earnings per share growth to maintain its pace in 2005 also contributed to the stock's 1.8 percent gain, and bolstered sector peers including GlaxoSmithKline. Elsewhere, BAT added 2.3 percent after posting a 10 percent rise in 2004 earnings and promising more cost cuts. In Germany, Deutsche Post gained 1.3 percent after its fourth-quarter core profit came in above analysts' expectations, while Lufthansa was up 2.9 percent on news it would resume payment of a dividend for 2004 as it posted higher full-year operating profit that beat analysts' forecasts. Airlines nosed higher across the board as oil prices slipped from a recent four-month peak, which alleviated investors' worries that surging fuel costs would eat into their profits. --More 2222 Local Time 1922 GMT
