* FTSEurofirst 300 up 2.3 pct, snapping 4-day losing streak
* Insurers, banks lead sectoral gainers
* RBS gains after puts assets in UK insurance scheme
By Christoph Steitz
FRANKFURT, Feb 26 (Reuters) - European shares closed higher
on Thursday, snapping a four-day losing streak, as Royal Bank of
Scotland <RBS.L> boosted a resurging banking sector, while
investors received U.S. housing data positively .
The FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of top European shares
closed 2.3 percent higher at 732.47 points, after hitting a
six-year low on Wednesday. It has fallen more than 12 percent so
far this year, after plummeting 45 percent last year.
RBS jumped 25.5 percent after saying it would put 325
billion pounds ($463 billion) of its assets into Britain's bank
insurance scheme. It also booked a 2008 loss of 24.1 billion
pounds, the biggest in British corporate history.
"When a state puts a bank under its wings, it always causing
a small recovery rally," said Giuseppe-Guido Amato, strategist
at Lang & Schwarz in Germany, referring to statements by RBS
that the British government's stake in the bank could rise as
high as 95 percent. [] []
Banking stocks gained, with UBS <UBSN.VX>, Deutsche Bank
<DBKGn.DE>, BNP Paribas <BNPP.PA>, Societe Generale <SOGN.PA> up
between 8.9 percent and 16.2 percent.
"For me, this is the frail attempt of a bear-market rally.
It may not be sustainable enough, but if the markets go into the
weekend on a positive note, I could imagine that gains will
continue next week," he added.
"U.S. housing data was well received by the markets, too."
A report showed sales of new single-family homes in the
United States slumped to a record low last month, the prior
month's drop was pared back, providing some relief to investors.
INSURERS UP
The DJ Stoxx insurance index <.SXIP> was the top sectoral
gainer, up 9.75 percent.
Allianz <ALVG.DE> posted a worse-than-expected loss for
2008, saying it had been affected by losses at Dresdner Bank,
which Allianz sold to Commerzbank <CBKG.DE> in a deal completed
last month.
However, Allianz shares were up 12.4 percent as investors
showed relief that Dresdner Bank had found a new home.
BASF <BASF.DE> gained 7.4 percent after the German chemical
maker's chief executive reiterated his commitment to a steady
dividend in coming years.
"This relief rally can be linked to the statements made by
management on the dividend policy," says Harald Gruber, analyst
at Silvia Quandt Research.
Sentiment in Europe was also boosted by U.S. President
Barack Obama's budget proposal, unveiled on Thursday, pencilling
in the possibility he may request an additional $250 billion to
help fix the troubled U.S. financial system. []
On the downside, pharma stocks were the biggest sectoral
decliners. The DJ Stoxx healthcare index <.SXDP> shed 1.1
percent, while Sanofi-Aventis <SASY.PA>, Bayer <BAYG.DE> and
AstraZeneca <AZN.L>, were down 1.8 percent to 2.5 percent.
Around Europe, UK's FTSE 100 index <> was up 1.7
percent, while Germany's DAX index <> rose 2.5 percent and
France's CAC 40 <> gained 1.8 percent.
(Additional reporting by Blaise Robinson in Paris; Editing by
Andrew Macdonald)
