Shares rose steadily for the second straight day on Friday, with banks the main bene"ciaries.

However, the index has still only caught up on a third of the losses incurred in the last two weeks of trading and still has a distance to go before reaching the 8,000 mark achieved just two weeks ago.

.LONDON FTSE 100 5791.0 Up 2.4% on week UK stocks climbed for a second day, with all but one stock gaining in the benchmark. Anglo American and BHP Billiton led a rally by mining shares. HSBC, Europe's biggest bank by market value, increased after saying "rst-quarter earnings improved. Financial shares were also lifted as a US economic report damped speculation that global interest rates will rise much further.

The FTSE 100 Index gained 113.30, or 2 percent, to 5791 as 101 stocks rose and Tate & Lyle was the only faller. The index advanced 2.4% for the week, making up for two straight weekly declines. Shares had slumped earlier in the month on speculation that rising borrowing costs worldwide will slow economic and profit growth.

.EUROPE EuroStoxx 50 3403.64 Up 1.4% on week European stocks rose for a second day on Friday, their "rst back-to-back gain in two weeks, on optimism that the global economy will expand fast enough to maintain earnings growth.

Unilever advanced after Deutsche Bank recommended the company, citing its pro"t outlook. ThyssenKrupp and Corus Group increased after takeover speculation.

.NEW YORK DOW 11278, up 1.1% NASDAQ 2210.37, up 0.8% S&P 500 1280.16, up 1.0% US stocks ended a winning week with a third day of gains on Friday as a government report showed consumer spending increased without fueling in"ation. Financial shares led the advance as analysts recommended Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, and Charles Schwab.