http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/05/10/bloomberg1376-L275NH0D9L36-3.DTL

May 10 (Bloomberg) -- Hungary's stocks and currency rallied, sending the benchmark BUX stock index to the biggest gain since October 2008, after European policy makers unveiled a $960 billion plan to end the region's debt crisis.

The BUX snapped a five-day decline, rising 9.6 percent to 23,485.25 by 11:10 a.m. in Budapest. OTP Bank Nyrt., the country's largest lender and Mol Nyrt., the nation's biggest refiner, led gains. The forint strengthened 2.1 percent against the euro, the biggest gain in a year.

Governments of the 16 euro nations agreed to lend as much as 750 billion euros ($962 billion) to countries under attack from speculators. The European Central Bank said it will counter "severe tensions" in "certain" markets by purchasing government and private debt. Concerns that the Greek financial crisis will spread wiped $3.7 trillion from the value of global stock markets last week.

The decision will calm markets as it "finally shows the EU is capable of firm decisions," Pal Hetyessy, a stock trader at ING Bank Groep NV in Budapest said in a phone interview. "We're seeing a panic-like short covering, especially in OTP, investors are scrambling to get out of their short positions."

OTP surged as much as 734, forint, or 12.6 percent, to 6,584 forint, rising the most in almost a year after the stock stumbled 18.5 percent last week. OTP, the most traded stock in the BUX, is a proxy for the economy, Hetyessy said. Mol advanced as much as 1,850 forint, or 10.3 percent, to 19,800 forint, jumping the most since March 30, 2009.

--Editors: Balazs Penz, Gavin Serkin.