LONDON - Britain's leading shares index added 0.3 percent, extending its winning streak to eight sessions thanks to modest gains on Wall Street and solid second-quarter results from drugs giant GlaxoSmithKline. The FTSE 100 closed at 4,493.73 points, up 12.56 or 0.28 percent.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROFIRST

EUROPE - European shares closed higher for the eighth straight session, their longest winning streak since December 2006, as gains in pharmaceutical stocks overshadowed falls in banking stocks.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares ended 0.2 percent higher at 890.05 points, the highest close since early January, after trading in a wide range of 879.97-890.38 points.

The index is up around 37 percent from its lifetime low of March 9.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROmarkets

FRANKFURT - The DAX index ended at 5,121.56 points, up 27.59 or 0.54 percent.

PARIS - The CAC-40 index closed at 3,305.07 points, up 2.18 or 0.07 percent.

ZURICH - The Swiss market index closed at 5,637.02 points, up 0.83 or 0.01 percent.

MILAN - The FT IT All Share index closed at 20,595.98 points, up 77.15 or 0.38 percent.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:nikkei

TOKYO - Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.7 percent to hit its highest in more than two weeks as technical buying boosted futures prices, but gains were capped as exporters such as Canon Inc were soft due to the yen's strength. The Nikkei gained 71.14 points to 9,723.16, its highest since July 3. It rose for a sixth straight day, its best performance in nearly seven months.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:hang seng

HONG KONG - Chinese stocks scored their biggest one-day gain in seven weeks as oil and coal shares surged on a solid earnings outlook, while Hong Kong-listed shares fell off a 10-month peak as blue chips succumbed to profit taking.

The Hang Seng Index was down 253.56 points at 19,248.17.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:asx

SYDNEY - Australian shares rose 0.4 percent, extending their rally to a seventh session as economic optimism continued to spur investors, though gains were capped by a bumper capital raising by National Australia Bank. The S&P/ASX 200 rose 17.8 points to 4,068.5, its highest close since November 10.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:south africa

JOHANNESBURG - South African resource-heavy stocks retreated, weighed down by falling miners, but the rand continued to push stronger despite violent protests over poor services. The All-share index closed at 23,607.81 points, down 250.17 or 1.05 percent.