European and Asian markets have rallied in response to efforts by world leaders to end the recent financial turmoil.
London's FTSE 100, France's Cac 40 and Germany's Dax index all jumped more than 6%, tracking earlier gains on Asian markets.
Major central banks said they would offer financial institutions an unlimited amount of short-term dollar loans to help stem the crisis.
EU leaders said on Sunday no big bank would be be allowed to fail.
UK shares got a boost after the government said it would inject up to Ј37bn of taxpayer cash into Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Lloyds TSB and HBOS.
The FTSE 100 index was up 268.56 points, or 6.83%, at 4,200.62 points.
Lifelines
Governments around the world had been racing to throw financial institutions a lifeline before the major markets re-opened.
At the weekend, finance ministers from the main industrialised nations - the G7 - approved a five-point plan to unfreeze credit markets, and a number of countries announced individual rescue packages.
The European plan was confirmed after an emergency Paris summit of the 15 eurozone leaders on Sunday.
Under the eurozone plan, members pledged to guarantee loans between banks until the end of 2009, and said they would put money into them by buying preference shares.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy - whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU - said the group was taking unprecedented steps.
The plan was similar to one announced by Britain last week, and although the UK is not a member of the eurozone club, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown attended parts of Sunday's talks.
Governments in Germany, France, Italy and elsewhere are due to present their individual plans later, within the agreed eurozone framework, said Mr Sarkozy.
"The crisis has over the past few days entered into a phase that makes it intolerable to opt for procrastination and a go-it-alone approach," he said.
Mr Sarkozy said the plan addressed all aspects of the financial crisis, but he did not say how much it would cost.
Australia's Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said his government would guarantee all bank deposits, however large, for the next three years.
Correspondents say that type of move raised confidence as markets opened, and Australia's central bank on Monday pumped $2bn into the banking system to facilitate improve lending between banks.
Asian shares rally
Australia's benchmark index ended 5.6% higher and South Korea's main Kospi index finished up 3.8%.
Hong Kong shares ended up 9.7% and Shanghai's benchmark index rose 3.65% after falling earlier.
But Taiwan stocks fell 2.15%.
Japan's stock market was closed for a public holiday.
(BBC)
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