European shares rose early on Tuesday on optimism a fresh bailout deal for debt-ladenGreece would go ahead, with banks among he biggest gainers.
At 3:08 a.m. EDT, the FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares was up 0.7 percent at 1,141.11 points, after falling 0.2 percent in the previous session in low volumes, as both the UK and U.S. markets were closed for a holiday.
The European Union raced to draft a fresh bailout package for indebted Greece to release vital loans next month and avert the risk of the euro zone country defaulting.
Germany, which along with some other countries had resisted extra funding, is considering concessions in efforts to support the country by dropping its push for an early rescheduling of Greek bonds, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
The early gains were, however, “a triumph of optimism over practicality,” said Justin Urquhart Stewart, director at Seven Investment Management. “Until people come up with structural reforms for the system, then all we’re doing is treating the symptoms, not the causes.”
Banks, many of which have exposure to Greek and other euro zone peripheral debt, were among the biggest risers.
Heavyweight banks to rise included Banco Santander (SAN.MC), Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), Societe Generale (SOGN.PA) and UniCredit (CRDI.MI), up between 1.6 and 2.3 percent.
