European Factors - Shares set to open higher after Fed

(Updates snapshots, adds comments and more company news)

LONDON, Aug 13 (Reuters) - European shares are set to open higher on
Thursday, extending the previous session's sharp gains, after the U.S. Federal
Reserve said it saw signs of a more stable U.S. economy and Germany and France
returned to economic growth in the second quarter growth.

Futures for Euro STOXX 50 STXEc1, Germany's DAX FDXc1 and France's CAC
40 FCEc1 were up 0.2-0.5 percent by 0635 GMT. Earlier, financial spreadbetters
expected Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE to open up 12 to 24 points, or as much as
0.5 percent.

The Fed said on Wednesday the U.S. economy was showing signs of levelling
out two years after the onset of the deepest financial crisis in decades and it
moved to phase out one emergency measure. [ID:nN1272730]

U.S. stocks rose overnight, while Tokyo's Nikkei average .N225 gained 0.8
percent. Commodity prices were also firmer, with the crude prices CLc1 edging
near $71 a barrel.

"After some positive noises out of both the Fed and the BoE yesterday as
well as some better than expected German GDP figures this morning traders will
again be filled with the thoughts of economic recovery which should be enough to
boost us higher at least on the open if not a little further," said James
Hughes, market analyst at CMC Markets in London.

Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABI.BR), the world's largest brewer, reported a
higher-than-expected second quarter profits but said the second half of the year
would be significantly weaker.

German GDP rose unexpectedly by 0.3 percent in the second quarter, bringing
an end to the country's deepest recession since World War Two and boosting hopes
of recovery in the broader euro-zone, while French gross domestic product also
grew by 0.3 percent in the second quarter. [ID:nLD331672]

Euro zone second-quarter GDP data is due at 0900 GMT.

The FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares closed 1.1
percent higher on Wednesday, ending a two-day losing run. The index has rallied
nearly 46 percent since hitting a lifetime low on March 9, and is up more than
13 percent for the year.

----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT AT 0635 GMT----------------------

LAST PCT CHG NET CHG

S&P 500 .SPX 1,005.81 1.15 % 11.46

NIKKEI .N225 10,517.19 0.79 % 82.19

MSCI ASIA EX-JP .MIASJ0000PUS 432.26 1.84 % 7.81

EUR/USD EUR= 1.4263 0.44 % 0.0062

USD/JPY JPY= 96.17 0.09 % 0.0900

10-YR US TSY YLD US10YT=RR 3.735 -- 0.02

10-YR BUND YLD EU10YT=RR 3.489 -- 0.03

SPOT GOLD XAU= $952.15 0.64 % $6.10

US CRUDE CLc1 $70.93 1.10 % 0.77

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

* Wall Street gains as Fed says economy stabilising [ID:nN12181240]

* Nikkei edges back towards 10-mth high on Fed relief [ID:nT140805]

* GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia stocks, Australia dlr rise after Fed [ID:nSP292313]

* Oil near $71/bbl as recovery optimism offsets demand fears [ID:nSP523146]

* Dollar inches lower vs high-yielders after Fed [ID:nT128531]

* TREASURIES-Stabilise in Asia after Fed, await 30-yr auction [ID:nT130773]

* PRECIOUS-Gold rises to trade around $950, ETF stable [ID:nT133355]

COMPANY NEWS

ANHEUSER-BUSCH INBEV (ABI.BR)

The world's largest brewer reported a higher than expected second-quarter
profit but said the second half of the year would be significantly weaker.
[ID:nLD280809]

PRUDENTIAL (PRU.L)

The British insurer raised its interim dividend after reporting a
smaller-than-expected drop in half-year profit, and said its capital position
remained strong. [ID:nLD341084]

RWE AG (RWEG.DE)
Germany's RWE, Europe's fifth-largest utility, said its operating profit in
the first half rose 3.8 percent, meeting market expectations, and reiterated its
earnings expectations for 2009. [ID:nL0695729]

AEGON NV (AEGN.AS)

The Dutch insurer reported a surprise second-quarter loss and said it will
sell up to 1 billion euros in stock to partially repay aid it received from the
Dutch state. [ID:nLD054344]

RIO TINTO (RIO.L)

The U.S. coal business of miner Rio Tinto submitted a new application on
Wednesday for an initial public offering of up to $500 million. [ID:nN12165613]

RAIFFEISEN INTERNATIONAL RIBH.VI

Emerging Europe's No. 2 lender stayed profitable in the second quarter but
net income declined 60 percent from the first quarter as bad debt losses in
Ukraine widened. [ID:nLC202779]

K+S SDFG.DE
German salt miner K+S said its full-year earnings would drop sharply after
second-quarter operating profit plummeted as demand for its main product potash
remained sluggish. [ID:nLC655962]

JULIUS BAER (BAER.VX)

Julius Baer has hired UBS to advice on a possible bid for ING private
banking units in Asia and Europe, sources with knowledge of the deal told
Reuters on Thursday. [ID:nSIN448924]

Q-CELLS (QCEG.DE)

Q-Cells, one of the world's biggest maker of solar cells, is planning to
slash about 500 jobs, it said, in a move to counter the effects of a sector
crisis that had forced it to cut its outlook. [ID:nLC338754]

TUI AG (TUIGn.DE)

TUI AG, owner of Europe's largest holiday company, TUI Travel (TT.L), posted
a worse-than-expected second-quarter net loss due to charges for loans it has
given to its former container shipping unit. [ID:nLA223170]

THOMAS COOK (TCG.L)

Europe's second-biggest travel firm said it did not expect to meet its
operating profit target of 480 million pounds ($788.9 million) in 2010 because
of tough market conditions. [ID:nLC7430]

LUNDBECK (LUN.CO)

The Danish drugmaker reported a slightly smaller-than-expected rise in
operating profits for the second quarter and maintained its
full-year 2009 guidance. [ID:nDKT004554]

BAE SYSTEMS (BAES.L)

The Pentagon may want to consider scaling back Lockheed Martin Corp's
(LMT.N) multinational F-35 fighter programme, the costliest-ever U.S.
arms-purchase plan, as part of stepped-up budget belt-tightening, an analysis by
an influential research group said. [ID:nN12116405]

BAE Systems (BAES.L) and Northrop Grumman (NOC.N) are Lockheed's chief F-35
sub-contractors.

KLOECKNER & CO KCOG.DE

The leading independent steel and metals distributor in Europe posted a
second-quarter core operating loss, missing the estimates of analysts, who had
expected a small profit. [ID:nLD482778]

(Reporting by Dominic Lau)