STOCKS NEWS EUROPE-Barratt boosted by buoyant update

Shares in Barratt Developments top the FTSE 250 leader board, up 5.5 percent with the index up 0.1 percent, as the housebuilder says a focus on margins over volumes would help "significantly" improve its full-year profit, aided by higher reservation rates and selling prices in recent months.

Britain's third largest housebuilder by market value says, in an interim management, that average weekly net private reservations were up 25.9 percent from July 1 to Nov. 13 with 0.53 net private reservations per site per week.

"With higher selling prices, lower cancellation rates and an increase in active sites, Britain's best known housebuilder is sending a clear message that the UK housing market as a whole is in recovery mode," says Richard Curr, head of dealing at CFD specialist Prime Markets.

"Any improvement in mortgage and finance availability should result in a sharp improvement in Barratt fortunes, but even without this icing on the cake scenario, Prime Markets rates Barratt shares as a buy," Curr adds.

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Reuters messaging rm://jon.hopkins.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net