Important news from Shayla

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US STOCKS-Wall St gains as banks, homebuilders lead

* IBM falls after earnings fail to impress* Homebuilders up on strong NAHB numbers* Indexes up: Dow 1 pct, S&P 1.3 pct, Nasdaq 0.7 pctBy Angela MoonNEW YORK, Oct 18 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday, overcoming what some saw as disappointing earnings from major financial companies, while positive European news became a trigger to rush into the market.All three major indexes started off lower on weak earnings from Goldman Sachs and less-than-stellar results from Bank of America. However, the European Central Bank was believed to be buying Italian bonds, which helped turn around the market."This market has such momentum when it comes to one direction, and that is because of the lack of liquidity in the market. We are not seeing a lot of volume," said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment officer at Solaris Asset Management in Bedford Hills, New York."So when a real seller or buyer comes in, it moves the market a lot and people follow."Trading volume continued to be low, with just 4.8 billion shares exchanging hands on the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE Amex and Nasdaq by late afternoon.Volatility also was evident with the CBOE Volatility Index VIX above 30.The Dow Jones industrial average rose 117.99 points, or 1.04 percent, at 11,514.99. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 15.85 points, or 1.32 percent, at 1,216.71. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 19.29 points, or 0.74 percent, at 2,634.21.Tuesday's gains followed the worst loss by the S&P 500 in two weeks on Monday on the heels of the benchmark index's first two-week rally since July.Corporate earnings were mixed on Tuesday.Bank of America Corp jumped 7.8 percent to $6.50 after it reported a third-quarter profit but showed its main businesses struggled as income from lending and investment banking fell.The KBW bank index advanced 3.7 percent.Goldman Sachs Group Inc also added 2.4 percent to $99.22 after reporting a rare loss.State Street Corp climbed 6.5 percent to $36.06 after its net income rose, lifted by tax benefits and double-digit gains from servicing and investment management fees.The KBW bank index advanced 3.7 percent.But International Business Machines Corp fell 4.5 percent to $178.97 after Big Blue's earnings beat failed to stem worries about a slowdown in technology spending.U.S. homebuilder stocks were helped by strong homebuilder sentiment data, signaling a recovery in the housing market.Shares of KB Home rose 8.4 percent to $6.82 and Pulte Group Inc was up 11 percent to $4.45.The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Sentiment Index climbed to 18, the highest level since the expiration of the homebuyer tax credit in 2010, data from the group showed.Moody's cautioned it may slap a negative outlook on France's Aaa credit rating in the next three months if costs from helping to bail out banks and other euro zone members stretch its budget too thin.Another negative was data showing China's growth slowed in the third quarter to its weakest pace since early 2009.

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UK band Stone Roses reunite 15 years on for world tour

The quartet's eponymous debut album, released in 1989, is considered one of the greatest records to come out of British rock.They produced just one more studio album, "Second Coming," in 1994, although lead singer Ian Brown hinted that there could be a third in the works."We hope so, but we said that before didn't we?" he told a London press conference on Tuesday.Asked why the band had reformed 15 years after splitting, Brown replied: "Because I think we're great and I think we've still got it and I think we've still got something to give to people, and I think that in times like this we can uplift people."The tour starts on June 29, 2012, with the first of two gigs at Manchester's Heaton Park. Further details of the tour have yet to be released.The reformed group will feature what most people consider to be the core quartet -- vocalist Brown, guitarist John Squire, bass player Gary "Mani" Mounfield and drummer Alan "Reni" Wren.All four were at the briefing, ending months of speculation that they would reform.Earlier this year, however, Squire poured cold water on the idea and was quoted by NME music magazine as saying: "When it's just a get-together for a big payday and everyone gets their old clothes out, that seems tragic to me."Seeking to explain his change of heart, he told reporters: "Everything changed when me and Ian started seeing each other again. It was surreal. We went from crying and laughing about the old days to writing songs in a heartbeat."I think it's in some ways a friendship that defines us both and it needed fixing and two phone calls later the band was no longer dead."The catalyst for their reunion was Mani's mother's funeral, he said.Mani, who will have to give up playing with Primal Scream for the foreseeable future, added: "Beautiful things come out of a really sad situation."Brown denied the reunion was about money, saying the group had had many invitations in the past to get back together.Asked to comment on fellow Mancunian musician Shaun Ryder's comment recently that he was doing it to fund his divorce, Brown joked: "There's always truth in Shaun Ryder's comments."The Stone Roses join a long list of British bands who have reformed in recent years, from ex-boy band Take That to indie rockers Pulp and from Blur to Spandau Ballet.Some fans are skeptical about their motives, putting musicians' urge to bury hatchets down to cynical commercialism at a time when top acts can still earn a small fortune from a single live tour.But tickets tend to sell out fast, underlining ongoing demand for disbanded acts to reform.The Stone Roses formed in Manchester in 1983, and were among the pioneers of a musical movement known as "Madchester" in the late 1980s and 1990s that also included New Order and the Happy Mondays.The second, and final, studio album hit stores in 1994, but never matched the acclaim of their debut.Reni left the group in 1995, when The Stone Roses played a sellout tour of Britain. Guitarist and songwriter Squire quit in 1996, prompting the band's swift demise.

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Clinton in Tripoli; Gaddafi forces counter-attack

The visit by Clinton, the most senior U.S. official to come to Tripoli since Gaddafi's 42-year rule ended in August, was marked by tight security, reflecting worries that the new rulers have yet to establish full control over the country.U.S. officials said Clinton's visit was aimed at cementing a partnership with the new government and helping it steer toward democracy. Clinton would encourage the National Transitional Council to fulfill pledges to move swiftly toward elections."The important thing is to be able to show the Libyan people that there is momentum," a senior administration official traveling with Clinton said."We're pushing the (NTC) to be able to show the Libyan people that they're serious in their commitments to transition, that they're serious in their commitments to rule of law, that they're serious about getting to those elections."Washington is also offering Libya practical help to contain the thousands of weapons flooding the country in the wake of the war to oust Gaddafi. Security experts say these could fall into the hands of al Qaeda.The United States took part in the NATO bombing campaign that helped the NTC take power, although its aircraft largely played a secondary role to those of Britain and France.SIRTE SETBACKNearly two months since capturing Tripoli, the NTC has failed to defeat remaining Gaddafi loyalists, raising questions about its ability to exert its authority over the entire country and postponing the launch of its promised democracy program.Clinton arrived as the interim government was facing a military setback in Sirte, a city on the Mediterranean coast where a few days ago it was poised to declare victory over pro-Gaddafi forces.Sirte is now the last major Libyan town where pro-Gaddafi forces are holding out, after the other bastion of resistance, Bani Walid, fell to the country's new rulers on Monday.Gaddafi loyalists who had been cornered in a an area of Sirte of about two square kilometers (a square mile) appeared to have broken out of their encirclement, Reuters reporters in the city said. A group of NTC fighters was forced to pull back about 2 km (1.2 miles) after they came under heavy fire.The force was trying to regroup near the Ouagadougou conference center -- the complex where Gaddafi used to host foreign heads of state -- but was pinned down.A volley of 22 mm rounds from Gaddafi loyalists thudded into the group, hitting four vehicles and seriously wounding one NTC fighter. He was loaded into an ambulance and driven away.On the southern outskirts of the city, in an area that in previous days had been safe from gunfire, mortars were landing and air-burst rounds were exploding overhead.On the edge of the "Seven hundred" district in central Sirte, the front line had not moved but the mood of optimism among NTC fighters had been replaced by despair at the mounting casualties.A Reuters reporter saw one man hit by bullets from pro-Gaddafi forces.People around him tried to resuscitate the fighter but they stopped after five minutes when it became clear he was dead. Afterwards, they threw down sand to mop up the pool of blood from his body.PREMATURE CELEBRATIONThe scene was in marked contrast to events earlier this week, when Gaddafi loyalists offered little resistance as NTC forces pummeled them with tank fire and mortars.Libya's new rulers were so confident of their imminent victory in the town that NTC chairman Mustafa Abdel Jalil visited Sirte last week and was greeted by fighters firing triumphantly into the air.NTC troops say loyalists use the cover of darkness to sneak out of their encirclement and then open fire and the NTC effort -- by mostly amateur fighters in a hotchpotch of volunteer units -- has been hampered by a lack of coordination.Units from Benghazi in eastern Libya and Misrata to the west have lost men in "friendly fire" incidents, when they have fired at each other by mistake instead of at the Gaddafi loyalists.Mohammed Ismail, a field commander with the anti-Gaddafi Shohada al-Thaqil brigade, said his men decided to stop bombarding loyalists with artillery and were now using infantry."There was so much artillery firing in a small space that there was friendly fire," he said.Libya's new authorities took power nearly two months ago when an armed rebellion, with support from NATO missiles and warplanes, broke Gaddafi's grip on the capital, Tripoli, and ended his autocratic rule.Gaddafi is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of ordering the killing of civilians. He is in hiding, possibly deep in Libya's Sahara desert.The capture of Sirte is vital to the NTC, because it will mark the establishment of at least nominal control over all Libya's territory. The NTC has also said the fall of Sirte will be the signal for the process to begin of creating a fully-fledged government and building democratic institutions.That process though is fraught with risks for Libya because it will involve finding a way to divide up power between rival groups, many of them armed, who are impatient for a stake in the new Libya.

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UPDATE 1-UnitedHealth raises forecast as profit beats

Analysts on average expected $1.12 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.Health insurers' profits have benefited from Americans avoiding procedures and doctor visits during the weak economy, because it has kept claim costs low.

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Pope Benedict uses John Paul’s mobile platform in St Peter’s instead of walking

(Pope Benedict XVI stands on a mobile platform as he leaves after leading a mass in Saint Peter's Basilica at the Vatican October 16, 2011/Giampiero Sposito)

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GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks, euro rally on crisis hopes, U.S. data

* Brent settles above $114 on optimism over debt end game* Euro extends gains against dollar after U.S. retail data* Bonds succumb to rising equity markets, retail salesBy Herbert LashNEW YORK, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Global stocks and the euro rallied on Friday over growing optimism that Europe is on track to resolve its festering sovereign debt crisis and after data showed a surprising surge in U.S. retail sales.The benchmark S&P 500 posted back-to-back weekly gains for the first time since early July while the euro headed for its best week in nine months against the U.S. dollar and gold marked its biggest weekly rise in six weeks.Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank chiefs began two days of talks in Paris on Friday, which investors hope will provide a basis for a draft plan in time for a European Union summit on Oct. 23."Right now we are trading on hopes of a decisive policy response," said Jens Nordvig, head of G10 FX strategy at Nomura Securities in New York.The euro rose 0.8 percent to $1.3881.While investors do not expect a comprehensive strategy to Europe's debt crisis to come out of the meeting, there was growing optimism that the meeting would put Europe on track for a solution. In addition, data that U.S. retail sales grew by 1.1 percent in September, the fastest pace in seven months, boosted investor sentiment on the economy's prospects.The data, coupled with earnings from Google late Thursday that trounced analysts' expectations, led investors to shrug off a rating downgrade on Spain by Standard & Poor's and an unexpected slump in U.S. consumer confidence in October.The sales data also was expected to help lift forecasts for growth in gross domestic product even though a resolution to Europe's debt crisis was the real focus for investors."The data hasn't mattered for a couple of months. It matters here and there, but most of what today is, is Europe," said John Canally, investment strategist for LPL Financial in Boston."Just getting the details of this plan out there and making the details work is the most important thing," Canally said.For the week, the Dow gained 4.9 percent, the S&P 500 jumped 6 percent and the Nasdaq shot up 7.6 percent.The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 166.36 points, or 1.45 percent, at 11,644.49. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 20.92 points, or 1.74 percent, at 1,224.58. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 47.61 points, or 1.82 percent, at 2,667.85.Google shares jumped 5.9 percent to $591.68 after the Internet search company said growth at its mobile business and a strong emerging market lifted its third quarter, allaying worries that a slowing Europe was hurting business.In Europe, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top regional shares closed up 0.95 percent at 975.52 points, while MSCI's all-country world equity index gained 1.4 percent.The increased appetite for risk also lifted the price of crude oil more than 3 percent and pushed down the U.S. dollar and government debt, usually beneficiaries of bearish news."The outlook is good and getting better by the day. Risk is back on," said Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ in New York.Crude prices were propelled by the hopes that European leaders would soon agree on how to curtail the euro zone debt crisis.Early hints that China may loosen credit as inflation cools also boosted gains while investors mostly ignored a preliminary reading of U.S. consumer sentiment that sagged to 57.5 from 59.4 in September, a Thomson Michigan survey showed.November Brent crude settled up $3.57 at $114.68 a barrel on the day of its expiry. Brent crude for December delivery rose $3.26 to $112.46 a barrel.U.S. crude settled up $2.57 at $86.80 a barrel.U.S. Treasury debt prices fell, with 30-year yields posting their largest weekly gain in a year after the retail sales data cut the safe-haven allure of U.S. government debt.Benchmark 10-year note yields, meanwhile, rose for a third straight week, their best three-week advance since late December.The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note was down 20/32 in price to yield 2.25 percent.Spot gold prices rose $12.89 to $1,679.00 an ounce.U.S. gold futures for December delivery settled up $14.50 at $1,683 an ounce.

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Giants' Kennedy suspended for doping offence

Kennedy would be eligible to return to the Giants' roster following the team's November 13 game against the San Francisco Giants.The 31-year-old Kennedy has been used as a reserve and has just four tackles this season, his first with the Giants after stints with Minnesota, Jacksonville, Chicago and St. Louis in his nine-year career.

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UPDATE 1-ASML reiterates sees record 2011

* Q4 bookings seen above Q3 level of 514 mln euros* Reiterates FY net sales of record 5.5 billion euros (Adds details, quote)By Roberta CowanAMSTERDAM, OCT 12 - Dutch chip-equipment maker ASML said on Wednesday it expects fourth-quarter orders to exceed those booked in the third quarter but warned that customers are still holding back from placing new orders.ASML -- the world's largest maker of semiconductor lithography machines, which map out electronic circuits on silicon wafers -- said fourth-quarter orders are currently valued above the third-quarter level of 514 million euros. Analysts surveyed by Reuters see fourth-quarter bookings between 500 and 700 million euros."Despite the current turbulent macro-economic environment, ASML's strong business model and the industry need for the latest lithography technologies enable us to reiterate our expectation of 2011 revenues of about 5.5 billion euros," in line with initial guidance, ASML's chief executive, Eric Meurice, said in a statement."It is too early to understand how overall demand for semiconductors will contribute to our business in 2012, but we believe that a sustained need for leading-edge systems ... will likely result in increased fourth-quarter bookings, compared with Q3," Meurice added.ASML's order book development serves as a barometer for expectations of big chip makers such as Intel Corp , the world's largest, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing , the world's biggest contract chip maker. Intel reports xx quarter results on Tuesday October 18 and is expected to report revenue at the low end of its guided range.ASML said it expects fourth-quarter sales to be above 1.1 billion euros.The Dutch firm reported third-quarter net profit of 355 million euros, up from 269 million euros a year ago, while sales rose to 1.459 billion euros, from 1.176 billion euros a year ago.ASML competes with Japan's Nikon Corp. and Canon Inc. , and has a global market share of about 70 percent. It counts Samsung Electronics , Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and Intel among its customers.Intel reports third-quarter earnings on Tuesday October 18 and is expected to report revenue at the low end of its guided range.