Banks lead European shares to three-week high
* FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index up 0.8 percent
* ING, Credit Agricole gain after results
* For the latest stocks news click on [STXNEWS/EU]
By Brian Gorman
LONDON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - European shares gained in early trade on Wednesday, with France's Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA) among banks gaining after reporting results, and with sentiment lifted by upbeat Chinese data. At 0916 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares was up 0.8 percent at 1,018.06 points, after hitting a three-week high of 1,018.73.
The European benchmark is up more than 57 percent from its lifetime low of March 9 as investors have become more confident on the prospects for economic recovery.
Credit Agricole, France's biggest retail bank, rose 4.4 percent after posting a widely-expected fall in third-quarter profit on Tuesday after European markets closed. Italian banks UniCredit (CRDI.MI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) were up 0.5 and 1.4 percent respectively after results.
Other banks to gain included BBVA (BBVA.MC), BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), HSBC (HSBA.L) and Societe Generale (SOGN.PA), up 1.2-1.8 percent. Dutch bancassurer ING (ING.AS) rose 4.8 percent after posting hird-quarter profit in line with preannounced results.
Spain's largest bank, Santander (SAN.MC), rose 1 percent. On Tuesday, the bank said it made 5.09 billion euros ($7.63 billion) through an initial public offering of its Brazilian unit after a greenshoe option was partially exercised. [ID:nLA37822]
Data showed Chinese factory output growth leapt to a 19-month high in October, signalling the world's third-biggest economy has put the worst of the global downturn behind it.
"The Chinese data has helped, and you've had an accumulation of strong economic and corporate data in the United States," said Bernard McAlinden, investment strategist at NCB Stockbrokers, in Dublin.
"We're in a cyclical bull market, that's not very mature. The market was trying to correct, but the data has been too good."
Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE, Germany's DAX .GDAXI and France's CAC-40 .FCHI were up between 0.8 percent and 1 percent.
MINERS RISE Continued...
