European shares propped up by gains at BT and oil majors

(ADVISORY- Reuters plans to replace intra-day European and UK stock market reports with a Live Markets blog on Eikon - see cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets for site in development. See the bottom of the report for more details)

* FTSEurofirst 300 rebounds, still down nearly 10 pct in 2016

* BT shares rise after stronger than expected earnings

* Firmer oil price lifts shares of major energy companies

By Sudip Kar-Gupta

LONDON, May 5 (Reuters) - European stock markets steadied on Thursday, buoyed by some solid corporate earnings by firms including BT, and a rise in the shares of major oil companies that were boosted by a stronger oil price.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index rebounded slightly to stand 0.3 percent higher after falling 1.2 percent in the previous session to its lowest level in almost a month.

The FTSEurofirst has lost around 10 percent so far in 2016, hit -- like other global stock markets -- by worries about a slowdown in China, the world's second-biggest economy, and uncertainty over future U.S (Other OTC: UBGXF - news) interest rate rises.

"Lower prices are starting to attract bargain hunters. However, overall sentiment remains negative as uncertainty concerning global growth, a potential U.S. rate hike in Q3 and disappointing corporate earnings continue to take a toll on markets," said Markus Huber, a trader at City of London Markets Limited.

BT was one of the best-performing stocks in the region, rising 3.1 percent after BT reported a better-than-expected 6 percent rise in full-year earnings.

Firmer oil prices also lifted the shares of major oil producers.

Tullow Oil (LSE: TLW.L - news) jumped 6.8 percent while Spanish oil major Repsol (Amsterdam: RP6.AS - news) climbed 5 percent. Repsol shares gained despite the firm posting a decline in first-quarter profits as some analysts said it had still managed to beat market forecasts.

Today's European research round-up

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Mike Dolan, Markets Editor EMEA.