European stock markets closed higher this evening, ending a four-day losing streak, as Royal Bank of Scotland led a resurgent banking sector.
RBS jumped almost 27% to 29p after the company said it would put £325 billion of its assets into Britain's bank insurance scheme as it reported the biggest loss in British history. Lloyds gained 37% to just under 79p.
London's FTSE gained 67 points (1.7%) to close at 3,916. In Paris the CAC added 1.8% to end at 2,745 and Frankfurt's DAX soared 2.5% to 3,943.
In Dublin, the ISEQ finished just three points lower at 2,050. Irish Life & Permanent won back four cent to 70 cent, while Kerry gained 40 cent to €15.05. But CRH dropped 17 cent to €15.90 and Glanbia lost 11 to €1.99.
On Wall Street, markets rebounded from Wednesday's losses despite more weak economic data. The Dow Jones was up 49 points at 7,320 and the Nasdaq was two points ahead at 1,427. Earlier, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index ended flat, giving up early gains on a weak yen. The index closed three points higher at 7,458.
