FTSE up after surprise Fed boost; banks lead charge

By Michael Taylor

LONDON, March 11 (Reuters) - Britain's blue-chip index ended 1.1 percent higher on Tuesday as banking stocks pushed on after the Federal Reserve teamed up with other major central banks to ease credit conditions, boosting equity markets.

The FTSE 100 .FTSE climbed 61.3 points at 5,690.4 to snap a three-day losing streak after touching a high of 5,783.4.

In a surprise announcement, the Fed said it would add up to $200 billion to strained credit markets as part of a coordinated effort with other central banks. [ID:nN11555562]

U.S. stocks also rallied following the Fed's move.

The banking sector contributed 33 points to the index, making it the biggest positive influence.

Barclays (BARC.L: Quote, Profile, Research) climbed 5.1 percent, HBOS (HBOS.L: Quote, Profile, Research) was 4.9 percent higher and Standard Chartered (STAN.L: Quote, Profile, Research) tacked on 3 percent.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L: Quote, Profile, Research) (RBS) advanced 4.5 percent after the Dutch central bank approved the overall break-up of ABN AMRO after its takeover by a group led by RBS, according to documents obtained by ANP-Reuters. [ID:nL11290202]

"The previous two times that we've seen co-ordinated action by the central banks, the beneficial impact lasts for about a week and then it fades. It is reasonable that that's what we should expect," said Jim Wood-Smith, head of research at Williams de Broe.