LONDON: European stock markets edged upwards on Monday as investors gave a cautious welcome to a Franco-German pact to support Europe's troubled banking sector.
In initial deals, London's benchmark FTSE 100 index added 0.27 percent to 5,317.54 points, Frankfurt's DAX 30 gained 0.52 percent to 5,705.40 points and in Paris the CAC 40 rose 0.84 percent to 3,121.41 points.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel vowed Sunday a response to the eurozone debt crisis within weeks, insisting they were united on plans to shore up Europe's banks.
Without announcing concrete details, Sarkozy promised said there would be "lasting, global and quick responses before the end of the month" as the leaders sought to tackle a crippling credit crunch.
The announcement comes a few weeks ahead of a G20 summit in Cannes and Sarkozy said Europe must "arrive at the (meeting) united and with the problems resolved."
Meanwhile, Dexia shares were suspended in Paris and Brussels, after Belgium agreed on Monday to buy Dexia's local retail banking arm and split the cost of a "bad bank" with France in order to rescue the lender.
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