CORRECTED-UPDATE 1-European shares strengthen on recovery hopes, Germany leads gains

(Corrects to say shares fell 1%, not rose 1.2% in paragraph 9)
* German ruling parties agree extra economic support
measures
* Bayer jumps on future Roundup cancer claims deal
* Securitas drops as Q4 profit falls more than expected
* Investors watch for more U.S. stimulus

By Shreyashi Sanyal
Feb 4 (Reuters) - European shares rose on Thursday,
extending a rally for the fourth straight day, as investors were
hopeful of a swifter global economic recovery, with German
shares leading the advance among European Union members.
The STOXX 600 index .STOXX was 0.2% higher, while
Frankfurt shares .GDAXI rose 0.4%.
Germany's ruling coalition parties on Wednesday agreed a
batch of additional measures to support those hit hard
financially by the COVID-19 pandemic. "Last night's measures are another band aid for the most hit
sectors and people," said Carsten Brzeski, global head of macro
at ING.
Milan's FTSE MIB index .FTMIB edged 0.1% lower in early
trading, cooling from an over 2% gain in the previous session.
Former European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi on Wednesday
took on the task of forming a new government to end Italy's
political crisis, tackle the coronavirus emergency and overcome
deep economic recession.
Global markets remained hopeful after Democrats pushed ahead
on Wednesday with a manoeuvre to pass U.S. President Joe Biden's
$1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package without Republican
support. With the reporting season in full swing, market participants
also looked at earnings from European companies.
Deutsche Bank AG's DBKGn.DE shares fell 1% even as the
German lender swung to a small annual profit in 2020, its first
since 2014, on the back of strong gains at its investment
banking division. Securitas AB SECUb.ST fell 2.1% after the world's biggest
security services group posted a bigger drop than expected in
fourth-quarter profit. Unilever ULVR.L fell 3.4% after the consumer goods giant
reported underlying sales growth for the fourth quarter that was
in line with estimates. Shell RDSa.L rose 0.7% after the company boosted its
dividend again, even as 2020 profit dropped to its lowest in at
least two decades. Bayer AG BAYGn.DE jumped 4.7% after the German company
struck a $2 billion deal to resolve future legal claims that its
widely used weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. The European blue-chip index .STOXX50 was flat, while the
euro zone blue-chip index .STOXX50E rose 0.2%.