Airlines, Financial Shares Send European Markets Higher

London, UK (AHN) - As in Asia, European financial shares and oil-sensitive sectors rose during Wednesday trading with markets in Britain, Paris and Germany moving higher.

At 11:47 Eastern, the pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx index was up 2 percent at 287. The UK FTSE was up 1.8 percent at 5,461.

In Paris, the market was gaining 1.9 percent at 4,408. Germany Daxx was also rising, up 1.4 percent to 6,536.

Stocks making headlines include UK lender HBOS, which rose 12 percent, followed by the Royal Bank of Scotland's 9.3 percent increase and Barclay's rising 7.2 percent.

It was also a bonus day for airlines. UK-based easyJet added 4.1 percent while Ryanair Holdings gained 3.9 percent and British Airways increased 2.8 percent.