Europe shares cheer bank rescue
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European shares soared by a record 9.2 per cent on Monday (local time), with financials in the lead in reaction to measures hammered out by government leaders and central bankers to revive credit markets and bail out banks.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares ended unofficially with a gain of 9.2 per cent, its biggest one-day percentage advance on record, to 929.29 points, more than wiping out Friday's 7.6 per cent slide to a five-year closing low.
The governments of Britain, Germany, France and Italy among others unveiled rescue packages designed to get to grips with the global financial crisis which has seen credit markets go into deep-freeze, threatening to exacerbate a looming recession.
"It will take time for these initiatives to start working, but already there are some signs of hope in money and credit markets," Morgan Stanley said in a European strategy note.
Financials led the surge, with Credit Suisse gaining 28 per cent, ING Group rising 20 per cent and Allianz closing 14 per cent up.
A sharp rebound in the shares of French utility GDF Suez, up 21.4 per cent, helped utilities become the top sectoral gainers with a rise of 15 per cent.
Higher base metals prices lifted shares in mining companies such as Anglo American, up 13 per cent, and Rio Tinto, up 12.5 per cent.
And higher crude oil prices helped oil companies' shares, with BP adding 11 per cent, Total 10 per cent and Royal Dutch Shell almost 10 per cent.
-Reuters
