* FTSEurofirst 300 <> rises 1.3 percent
* Royal Bank of Scotland surges on state insurance scheme
* UBS gains after change of chief executive
By Brian Gorman
LONDON, Feb 26 (Reuters) - European shares rose in early
trade on Thursday, snapping a four-day losing streak, as
investors assessed a flood of results and welcomed a UK
government insurance scheme for banks' assets.
At 0935 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of top
European shares was up 1.3 percent at 725.52 points, and had
been up more than 2 percent. The index has lost 12.8 percent in
2009, after falling 45 percent in 2008.
On Wednesday, the index fell 0.5 percent, hitting a new
six-year closing low for the fourth straight day.
The STOXX 600 <>, a broader index of European shares,
was up 1.2 percent, with banks adding most points.
Royal Bank of Scotland <RBS.L> surged 29 percent after the
bank said it planned to place 325 billion pounds in assets in a
state insurance scheme. []. RBS reported a loss of
24.1 billion pounds ($34.3 billion) for 2008, the biggest in
British corporate history,
Other UK banks to gain included Lloyds <LLOY.L> and HSBC
<HSBA.L>, up 25.8 percent and 6.9 percent respectively, and due
to report results on Friday and Monday respectively. Barclays
<BARC.L> rose 10.8 percent.
Stricken Swiss bank UBS <UBSN.VX> soared 9.7 percent after
appointing Oswald Gruebel, who masterminded a turnaround at arch
rival Credit Suisse <CSGN.VX>, as its new chief executive,
replacing Marcel Rohner. []
Allianz <ALVG.DE> rose 10.5 percent as its results showed
the extent to which it had been held back by its Dresdner Bank
unit, which it has sold to Commerzbank.
"We believe the refocusing of Allianz on insurance business
and asset management has improved the risk profile," said DZ
Bank analyst Thorsten Wenzel in a note to clients.
Telefonica <TEF.MC> rose 3.7 percent after Spain's largest
telecoms operator, said it was maintaining its 2010 growth
targets and forecast a 1 percent to 3 percent rise in OIBDA
(operating income before depreciation and amortization) in 2009.
[]
BASF <BASF.DE> rose 6 percent after the chemicals maker
reported a decline in fourth-quarter earnings and said it was
bracing for a sales decline in 2009. []
VALLOUREC FALLS
On the downside, seamless tube maker Vallourec <VLLP.PA>
fell 13.5 percent after it and forecast that sales would drop by
as much as 5 percent in the first quarter, hit by the global
industrial slowdown.
Dutch staffing company Randstad <RAND.AS> fell 11.4 percent
after scrapping its dividend payment for the first time and
reporting a fourth quarter net loss of 231 million euros due to
a writedown on its Vedior acquisition.
Germany's RWE <RWEG.DE>, Europe's fifth-largest utility,
fell 3.9 percent after 2008 profit fell.
German unemployment rose less than expected in February. It
rose by 40,000 month-on-month in seasonally adjusted terms, the
Labour Office confirmed. The mid-range forecast in a Reuters
poll of 31 economists was for a rise of 60,000 on the month.
But analysts were sceptical about the prospects for a
sustained recovery, and said the rise was largely down to some
investors hunting for bargains.
"I don't see a reason for a rally. The earnings are all on
the wrong side," said Bernard McAlinden, strategist at NCB
Stockbrokers in Dublin. "There's very little good news."
U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday after U.S. President Barack
Obama warned of stricter oversight for Wall Street, raising the
spectre of greater regulation that investors fear could sap
profits.
Futures for the Dow Jones <DJc1>, S&P 500 <SPc1> and Nasdaq
<NDc1> were up between 1.2 and 1.3 percent.
Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 <>, Germany's DAX
<> and France's CAC-40 <> were up between 1.4 and 2.2
percent.
(Editing by Hans Peters)
