Banks lead European stocks higher

European markets closed sharply higher Monday following an upbeat open on Wall Street and reassuring news from the battered banking sector.

Britain's Barclays bank surprised by releasing a statement showing it had made a good profit for 2008 and that it did not need any cash bailouts to stay in business, and its shares rose an astonishing 73.2 percent. Dutch bank ING rose 27.75 percent after it announced a loss but said it would shed 7,000 jobs and get a government backstop for 80 percent of a euro27.7 billion portfolio of risky assets.

Markets had sold off banking stocks in recent days over fears of more heavy losses and nationalizations.

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