LONDON, April 2 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 <.FTSE> index is seen opening up as much as 2 percent on Thursday, tracking gains in the U.S. and Asian markets, financial bookmakers said, as leaders of the Group of 20 gather in London to discuss the global financial crisis.
Financial spreadbetters expected the UK benchmark to open up 69 to 78 points after closing up 29.47 points, or 0.8 percent at 3,955.61 on Wednesday.
World leaders are set to declare an end to unfettered capitalism at the G20 summit after France and Germany demanded they act fast on promises to prevent a repeat of the worst economic crisis since the 1930s. [ID:nL1230573]
(For a TAKE A LOOK of the G20 summit, click on [ID:nL1146399])
In the United States, auto sales fell 37 percent in March, a smaller-than-expected drop that encouraged hope that the world's largest car market is nearing a bottom after a freefall that has pulled the industry into a deepening crisis. [ID:nN01293914]
Shares in Japanese carmakers Honda Motor <7267.T> and Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> rose sharply.
Meanwhile, U.S. accounting rulemakers are set to crumple on Thursday in the face of ultimatums from lawmakers, liberalising rules that will give banks leeway to report smaller losses and asset writedowns.
