M&A activity boosts European shares; Astra rises

LONDON, Sept 28 (Reuters) - European shares extended gains in afternoon trading on Monday, boosted by a pick up in merger and acquisition activity.

By 1352 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares was up 1.1 percent at 994.36 points, having fallen earlier to 974.85, the lowest level in three weeks.

U.S. Xerox Corp (XRX.N) announced its plan to buy Affiliated Computer Services Inc (ACS.N) in a $6.4 billion cash-and-stock deal. [ID:nN2863430]

Abbott Laboratories (ABT.N) also said it would buy the drugs unit of Belgium's Solvay (SOLB.BR) in a $6.6 billion deal, while Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) bought an 18 percent stake in Dutch biotech firm Crucell CRCL.AS for $444 million.

Heavyweight banks were among the top gainers in Europe, with Commerzbank (CBKG.DE), Barclays (BARC.L), HSBC (HSBA.L), Societe Generale (SOGN.PA) and Standard Chartered (STAN.L) up 1.4-3.4 percent.

AstraZeneca (AZN.L) advanced 3.3 percent, with traders citing market talk Swiss rival Novartis (NOVN.VX) could be considering a takeover offer. Both AstraZeneca and Novartis, whose shares added 0.8 percent, declined to comment.

U.S. stocks .DJI .SPX .IXIC extended gains, up 1-1.4 percent. (Reporting by Dominic Lau)