LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European shares advanced for the fourth straight day on Thursday, with corporate updates helping some firms gain ahead of a meeting of European leaders which could result in a rescue plan for Greece. Companies on the move after reporting earnings included automaker Renault (FR:RNO 31.55, -1.23, -3.75%) , up 1.3%, medical device maker Smith & Nephew (UK:SN. 659.50, +26.50, +4.19%) , up 2.8% and electricity giant EdF [s; fr:edf], up 3.9%. The U.K. FTSE 100 index rose 0.6% to 5,165.38, the German DAX index climbed 0.4% to 5,556.69 and the French CAC-40 index rose 0.5% to 3,655.01.
