LONDON - Britain's top share index rose, buoyed by consensus beating results from UK corporates and as anxiety over the euro zone's debt crisis eased, though BP sank as a major oil spill worsens.

The FTSE 100 closed up 31.23 points, or 0.5 percent, at 5,617.84, but the index remains down 1.9 percent on the week as jitters surrounding the euro zone's debt problems remain.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROFIRST

EUROPE - European shares bounced back after sharp declines in the last two days, with strong earnings, encouraging macro data and hopes that Greece is closer to a bailout deal prompting investors to return to equities.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares closed 1.25 percent higher at 1,070.06 points after falling 4.2 percent in the previous two sessions as downgrades of Greece, Portugal and Spain triggered a sell-off on stock markets worldwide.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROmarkets

FRANKFURT - The DAX index ended at 6,144.91 points, up 60.57 or 1.00 percent.

PARIS - The CAC-40 index closed at 3,840.62 points, up 53.62 or 1.42 percent.

ZURICH - The Swiss market index closed at 6,665.84 points, up 89.45 or 1.36 percent.

MILAN - The FT IT All Share index closed at 22,300.53 points, up 220.55 or one percent.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:nikkei

TOKYO - The Japanese stock market was closed for a public holiday, Showa Day. On Wednesday the Nikkei closed down 287.87 points at 10,924.79.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:hang seng

HONG KONG - The Hang Seng ended 0.81 percent lower after trading in a narrow range through the day with the bulk of trading activity coming in the last hour, tracking a late sell-off in China shares.

The Hang Seng Index ended down 170.48 points at 20,778.92.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:asx

SYDNEY - Australian stocks fell 0.8 percent, as no.4 lender Australia and New Zealand Banking Group led banks down after disappointing investors with a smaller dividend hike than expected.

The S&P/ASX 200 index lost 37.2 points to close at 4,785.6, its lowest close in more than six weeks.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:south africa

JOHANNESBURG - South Africa's rand rallied as much as one percent against the dollar, one of the best emerging currency performances for the day, as hopes of a financial package for Greece rekindled risk appetite.

The All-share index closed at 28,716.27 points, up 191.49 or 0.67 percent. The All Gold index closed at 2,382.27 points, up 32.81 or 1.4 percent, while the Industrial index closed at 22,477.2 points, up 145.52 or 0.65 percent.