* FTSEurofirst 300 gains 0.6 percent, banks top gainers
* Risk appetite up as DAX volatility index hits 19-month low
* Investors await ECB rate decision, U.S. earnings
* For up-to-the-minute market news, click on []
By Atul Prakash
LONDON, Jan 14 (Reuters) - European shares advanced for a
second straight session on Thursday, led higher by banks and
miners, ahead of the European Central Bank's rate decision and
more earnings results this week from U.S. companies.
Investor appetite for risky assets such as equities rose,
with the VDAX-NEW volatility index <.V1XI> falling 7.2 percent
to a 19-month low. The lower the index, which is based on sell
and buy options on Frankfurt's top-30 stocks <0#.GDAXI>, the
higher the market's desire to take risk.
At 0914 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of top
European shares was up 0.6 percent at 1,062.95 points after
gaining 0.2 percent in the previous session. The benchmark index
rose 26 percent in 2009 and has surged more than 64 percent
since hitting a record low in March last year.
Banks were among the top gainers, with Standard Chartered
<STAN.L>, Barclays <BARC.L>, Lloyds <LLOY.L>, Royal Bank of
Scotland <RBS.L>, BNP Paribas <BNPP.PA> and Societe Generale
<SOGN.PA> rising 0.3 to 3.2 percent.
Commerzbank <CBKG.DE> rose 2.7 percent after an executive
board member of the German bank, Michael Reuther, told daily
Handelsblatt that the group's investment banking unit could just
about break even this year.
"Earnings will be the most decisive factor during the next
couple of weeks," said Koen De Leus, economist at KBC
Securities.
"Everything now depends on the results of Intel and
JPMorgan. If they are better-than-expected, then this rally can
go on little bit further. If the results fail to impress, then
we could see a correction," he added.
Intel <INTC.O> results are due on Thursday, while JPMorgan
<JPM.N> announces quarterly figures on Friday.
Investors also awaited a rate decision by the European
Central Bank, which is set to start 2010 by flagging that
interest rates will remain at a record low of 1.0 percent for
some time, casting the bank's view on Greece's current debt
troubles into the spotlight.
In Australia, jobs data for December beat forecasts and the
market priced in a 75 percent chance of a rate rise at the next
policy meeting, sending the Aussie dollar <AUD=D4> up and the
low-yielding yen <JPY=> down. []
Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 index <>, Germany's
DAX <> and France's CAC 40 <> rose 0.6-0.7 percent.
MINERS IN DEMAND
Miners got strength from higher metals prices, with copper
<MCU3>, aluminium <MAL3>, zinc <MZN3> and nickel <MNI3> rising
0.2 to 0.7 percent on a weaker dollar and on easing jitters that
Chinese monetary tightening will slow growth in the world's
third biggest economy.
Rio Tinto <RIO.L> rose 2.7 percent after beating its own
forecast for iron ore output in the fourth quarter, reflecting
surging demand from Chinese steel-makers and putting producers
in a strong position for price talks this year. []
BHP Billiton <BLT.L>, Anglo American <AAL.L>, Antofagasta
<ANTO.L>, Xstrata <XTA.L> and Eurasian Natural Resources
<ENRC.L> gained 1.4 percent to 3.3 percent.
Investors also awaited Euro zone November industrial
production figures at 1000 GMT. Both weekly U.S. jobless claims
data for the week ended Jan. 9 and U.S. retail sales for
December were due at 1330 GMT.
Among individual movers, British confectioner Cadbury
<CBRY.L> rose 0.8 percent on hopes that U.S. chocolate maker
Hershey <HSY.N> may top Kraft's <KFT.N> hostile $17 billion
takeover offer. []
Primark-owner Associated British Foods <ABF.L> rose 1.8
percent after the company said it expected a significant rise in
annual profit, when reporting a 17 percent rise in first-quarter
sales boosted by its discount fashion retailer chain.
(Editing by Mike Nesbit)
