Buoyed by a strong Wall Street showing and the French government's announcment on a capital injection for its banks, shares in Paris were up sharply in early trading on Tuesday.
One hour after opening, the benchmark CAC 40 gained 2.56 per cent, to 3,536.76, with gainers outnumbering decliners by nearly 6 to 1.
Banking stocks led the surge after the French government announced late Monday that it would inject 10.5 billion euros (14 billion dollars) into the country's six-largest financial institutions by the end of the year.
Credit Agricole, which is to receive 3 billion euros, was up 10.86 per cent, to 11.58 euros, while Societe General (1.7 billion) had gained nearly 10 per cent, to 48.31 euros, and BNP Paribas (2.55 billion) rose 8.32 per cent, to 59.46 euros.
German exports plunged in November to record the biggest fall in nearly two decades, data released Thursday showed, as the deepening world economic downturn hits Europe's biggest economy.
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