Yahoo! is to close a number of its European auction sites within the next six weeks as part of its plan to make more money.

Yahoo!'s auction sites in the UK and Ireland, France, Germany, Italy and Spain are to be folded and replaced by services run by eBay instead.

In a statement Yahoo! Europe said: "The marketing relationship between the two companies was developed following Yahoo! Europe's decision to suspend its auction service in these six countries, consistent with Yahoo!'s company-wide approach to focus on areas that will drive long-term growth and profitability."

Instead, it seems Yahoo! Europe wants to focus on other ecommerce activities such as shopping and travel, where it hopes it can make a bob or two.

Within the next couple of weeks Yahoo! Europe will stop accepting new submissions for sale on those named Yahoo! auction sites.

Auction services across the rest of the Yahoo! global network are not affected by this agreement. ®