European shares rally 2 pct on financials, oils

* Banks rise, aided by gains in U.S. financials

* Oils gain despite weaker crude prices

* Porsche gains on Qatar bid report

* For up-to-the-minute market news, click on [STXNEWS/EU]

By Dominic Lau

LONDON, July 13 (Reuters) - European shares rallied on Monday, recouping some of last week's steep losses, as banks tracked advances in U.S. financials while oil stocks were also in demand despite weak crude prices.

The FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares closed up 2 percent at 830.19 points, after touching 805.93 earlier in the session -- its lowest since late April.

Volumes on the FTSEurofirst 300 were about 70 percent of the 90-day daily average.

Banks were among the top gainers, aided by advances in U.S. financials after influential analyst Meredith Whitney, who recently founded her own advisory firm, upgraded Goldman Sachs (GS.N) to "buy" from "neutral" and provided a reassuring assessment of the sector's performance.

BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), Banco Santander (SAN.MC), Credit Suisse (CSGN.VX), Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L), Barclays (BARC.L), Commerzbank (CBKG.DE) and Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) put on between 1.5 percent and 4.3 percent.

In the same sector UBS (UBSN.VX) was a standout performer with a 4.8 percent rise. A U.S. judge agreed to delay the start of a trial in which U.S. tax authorities hoped to force the Swiss bank to reveal the identities of thousands of wealthy Americans suspected of using the bank to dodge taxes.

The postponement was requested in a joint motion from UBS and the U.S. Justice Department, raising hopes of a settlement in the case.

Elsewhere some said shares looked better value after recent declines.

"The market has come back a lot. There is a suspicion that this quarter could prove to be slightly better. Earnings estimates have been revised down quite a bit," said Mike Lenhoff, chief strategist at London-based Brewin Dolphin.

"There is also a feeling that the U.S. economy reached the trough of the recession in last quarter for which the earnings are being reported now, and there is even a modest but positive growth in the third quarter."