European shares gain after 4-day losing run; banks up

                                
 * FTSEurofirst 300 up 0.8 percent
                                
 * Banks advance, commods get support from firm crude, metals
                                
 * UBS, Goldman Sachs raise year-end targets
                                
 * For up-to-the-minute market news, click on [STXNEWS/EU]
                                
 By Atul Prakash
                                
 LONDON, Sept 4 (Reuters) - European equities rose on Friday
after four sessions of losses, with financial and commodity
shares gaining ground ahead of keenly-watched U.S. non-farm
payrolls data.
                                
 At 0818 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 <.FTEU3> index of top
European shares was 0.8 percent higher at 957.08 points. It is
up 48 percent since a record low in March, but still down about
17 percent on a year ago just before the collapse of Lehman
Brothers accelerated the global credit crisis.
                                
 Banks were among top gainers, with Standard Chartered
<STAN.L>, HSBC <HSBA.L>, Barclays <BARC.L>, Lloyds <LLOY.L>,
Royal Bank of Scotland <RBS.L>, Swedbank <SWEDa.ST> and KBC
<KBC.BR> up 1 to 4.8 percent.
                                
 Miners got strength from higher metals prices, with zinc
<MZN3> jumping 5 percent to 13-month high on renewed confidence
in the global economy. Gold <XAU=> has gained about 5 percent in
two days to trade near $1,000 an ounce, copper <MCU3> rose 0.6
percent, and aluminium <MAL3> was up 0.5 percent.
                                
 BHP Billiton <BLT.L>, Anglo American <AAL.L>, Antofagasta
<ANTO.L>, Rio Tinto <RIO.L>, Xstrata <XTA.L> and ENRC <ENRC.L>
rose 1.7-2.8 percent. Among energy shares, Tullow Oil <TLW.L>
was up 1.4 percent, while Total <TOTF.PA> rose 1 percent.
                                
 "A poor week is in desperate need of a good finish. Having
enjoyed a stellar run over the past few weeks, it is now a test
of nerve for the market bulls," said John Murphy, analyst at ODL
Securities.
                                
 The index is down 2.2 percent this week after gaining in six
of the seven previous weeks.
                                
 Investors awaited U.S. jobs data, due at 1230 GMT. Employers
are likely to have cut 225,000 jobs in August, according to the
median forecast of 81 economists polled by Reuters, down from
247,000 in July, while the unemployment rate was forecast to
have inched up to 9.5 percent from 9.4 percent.
                                
 Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 index <.FTSE>, Germany's
DAX <.GDAXI> and France's CAC 40 <.FCHI> rose 0.5-0.8 percent.
                                
 
                                
 ANALYSTS RAISE FORECASTS
                                
 Some analysts raised forecasts for stock markets on
continued improvement in macro-economic conditions.
                                
 Goldman Sachs raised its year-end target for the DJ STOXX
600 <.STOXX> to 260 points from 235 and lifted its estimates of
net income growth pre-exceptionals for European corporates in
2010 to 40 percent from 34 percent on the back of higher global
economic growth forecasts. [ID:nL4349722]
                                
 UBS raised estimates of EPS growth for European corporates
in 2010 to 25 percent from 15 percent and increased its 2009
year-end target for the FTSEurofirst 300 index by 10 percent to
1,100 points.
                                
 "In the very near term we are fully aware that the equity
market looks somewhat overbought and appears likely to have some
form of modest correction," Nick Nelson, European equity
strategist at UBS, said in a note.
                                
 "However, given our view on the bounce back in earnings
growth next year and increasing conviction that the economic
cycle has turned, we feel the fundamental backdrop remains
supportive." [ID:nL4353654]
                                
 G20 policymakers will this weekend promise to keep economic
support packages in place until recovery is certain and seek to
reassure financial markets they have credible plans to withdraw
the stimulus when appropriate. [ID:nL398417]
                                
 Among individual shares, French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen
<PEUP.PA> rose 5.7 percent after French daily La Tribune
reported that the carmaker was mulling an alliance with Japanese
Mitsubishi Motors Corp <7211.T>. [ID:nL3365570]
                                
 When asked to comment on the story, a PSA Peugeot Citroen
spokesman said: "There is nothing new", and added: "I am not
confirming anything."
                                
 Deutsche Telekom <DTEGn.DE> was up 1.9 percent. The
Financial Times said in its on-line edition the company was in
talks with Vodafone <VOD.L>, France Telecom <FTE.PA> and
Telefonica <TEF.MC> about selling its British unit T-Mobile UK.
                                
 T-Mobile UK was not available for comment.
 (Editing by Dan Lalor)