Europe's main stock markets rebounded sharply in late morning trade on Friday after a strong finish on Wall Street, as investors awaited voting on a significant US economic stimulus package.
London's FTSE 100 index of leading shares jumped 1.45 percent to 4,263.07 points, Frankfurt's DAX 30 gained 1.65 percent to 4,480.12 points and in Paris the CAC 40 advanced 2.15 percent to 3,028.22.
The DJ Euro Stoxx 50 index of leading eurozone shares increased 1.83 percent to 2,255.59 points.
The European single currency climbed to 1.2906 dollars.
"What we have seen this morning is bargain hunting," City Index market strategist Joshua Raymond said regarding stocks activity in London.
"Trading has been choppy all week with ranges particularly tight and investors are likely to remain on edge for the time being," he added.
European stock markets had fallen hard on Thursday, in line with a sharply lower opening on Wall Street where investors maintained their scepticism on a massive US bank rescue scheme.
US stocks eventually stormed back to end little changed on unconfirmed reports that President Barack Obama's administration would help embattled homeowners avoid foreclosure.
Japanese share prices closed up 0.96 percent on Friday, supported by a weaker yen and bargain hunting after the previous day's sharp losses, dealers said.
Investors worldwide have eyes turned on Washington where the US Congress set the stage for final votes Friday to approve an unprecedented plan to pump 789 billion dollars into the listless US economy.
The House of Representatives planned to start debate at 9:00 am (1400 GMT) while the Senate targeted an evening vote on what would be Obama's biggest victory since taking office January 20.
Elsewhere on Friday, the London Stock Exchange said it would swap a Dutchwoman for a Frenchman as its chief executive, appointing Xavier Rolet, a former senior executive at collapsed US bank Lehman Brothers.
Furse, who had been expected to step down after eight years in charge, fended off a series of takeover approaches for the London Stock Exchange during her time at the top, before agreeing to a merger with Italy's bourse in 2007.
Furse also ranks among a small band of women who have managed to lead a listed British company and is the LSE's first female chief executive.
In London trade, the share price of LSE rose 5.59 percent to 496.25 pence.
In Paris, Air France-KLM surged 4.5 percent to 8.08 euros even though Europe's biggest airline said it had swung to a heavy loss in the last three months of 2008 as the economic crisis reduced demand for flights and cargo traffic.
Its share price rose as investors welcomed news that the airline would cut between 1,000 and 1,200 jobs this year and slash capital expenditure by 1.2 billion euros (1.5 billion dollars), including 600 million next year.
German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp meanwhile jumped to the top of the DAX, climbing 4.35 percent to 18.22 euros. The company told the market that a "drastic" drop in demand led to a 63-percent slump in its pre-tax profit in the last three months of 2008, but investors delighted in the fact they beat analyst expectations.
Also in Frankfurt, Siemens gained 1.95 percent to 47.01 euros after the German industrial giant announced it was cutting the working hours of a further 2,800 workers as the Munich-based firm's difficulties show no sign of abating.
