US STOCKS-Wall St climbs with Fannie and oil; Disney up late

Reuters: [2008-05-06 23:53:00]

(Updates close with volume and advance/decline figures)

By Ellis Mnyandu

NEW YORK, May 6 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday as Fannie Mae's <FNM.N> reassuring comments about the credit and housing markets buoyed financial shares, while record crude oil prices lifted shares of energy companies.

Speculation that Microsoft Corp <MSFT.O> could resume takeover talks with Yahoo Inc <YHOO.O> fed a rebound in technology shares. Yahoo gained 5.5 percent, while Microsoft rose 2.1 percent, leading the S&P 500's advance.

After an early retreat, the session turned positive when top executives of Fannie Mae, the largest U.S. home finance company, said the worst of the credit market turmoil erupting from the real estate slowdown may have passed. That mitigated earlier concern about its huge quarterly loss, and propelled a broad rally in financial stocks.

Fannie Mae climbed almost 9 percent, and smaller rival Freddie Mac <FRE.N> gained 7.1 percent.

Oil struck above $122 a barrel for the first time, carrying energy shares higher with it and outweighing a retreat in sectors sensitive to high fuel costs, such as airlines and retailers.

"When I came to work today, we thought Fannie Mae's stock will be trading south of $25, but somehow the investing public got news that they had a pretty positive conference call," said Angel Mata, managing director of listed equity trading at Stifel Nicolaus Capital Markets in Baltimore, Maryland.

"There's a lot of people that are eyeing the financials right now, so if you're going to play the financials, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have to be among them."

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> finished up 51.29 points, or 0.40 percent, at 13,020.83. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> ended up 10.77 points, or 0.77 percent, at 1,418.26. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> closed up 19.19 points, or 0.78 percent, at 2,483.31.

Immediately after the closing bell, there was more encouraging news that could help stocks extend their advance. Walt Disney Co <DIS.N> posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit, sending its shares up more than 3 percent in after-hours trade from their close at $33.73 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Disney, one of the world's largest media companies and owner of the ABC television network, ESPN all-sports cable TV network and Disney theme parks in Florida and southern California, is seen as a bellwether of consumer spending.

Cisco Systems Inc's <CSCO.O> shares jumped more than 2 percent after the bell from their Nasdaq close of $26.33 as the network equipment maker also posted a profit that topped estimates.

In the regular session, Fannie Mae shares finished at $30.81, while Freddie Mac shares closed at $27.33. Other financial standouts were insurer American International Group Inc <AIG.N>, which rose 2.1 percent to $48.40, and JPMorgan Chase & Co <JPM.N>, the No. 3 U.S. bank, whose stock added 0.4 percent to $48.20.

The optimism from Fannie Mae's comments also contributed to a rise in the shares of home builders, with the Dow Jones home construction index <.DJUSHB> up 2 percent for the day.

Shares of D.R. Horton Inc <DHI.N>, the largest U.S. home builder, jumped 5.5 percent to $16.85 even as the company posted a quarterly loss of $1.3 billion and halved its dividend. For details, see [ID:nN06454667]

Energy shares rose after U.S. crude oil hit a record above $122 a barrel. A stronger-than-expected profit from independent oil and gas company Anadarko Petroleum Corp <APC.N> also buoyed the energy sector.

Exxon Mobil shares rose 0.6 percent to $90.07, while ConocoPhillips <COP.N> climbed 1.8 percent to $88.74 and Chevron Corp's <CVX.N> shares gained 1.3 percent to $96.87, while Anadarko shares climbed 9.4 percent to $74.53.

Shares of oil services company Schlumberger Ltd <SLB.N> jumped 2 percent to $103.58. The oil index <.OIX> shot up 3.3 percent.

Investment bank Goldman Sachs <GS.N> said in a research note that the price of oil could shoot up to $200 a barrel within the next two years as part of a "super-spike" driven by poor growth in oil supplies.

"Energy prices are going to stay high until -- a) we get some production on line, which there's none that I know of -- or b) until we have a serious recession," said Sasha Kostadinov, portfolio manager at Shaker Investments in Cleveland, Ohio.

Microsoft Corp <MSFT.O> and Yahoo Inc <YHOO.O> were both among the Nasdaq's top five advancers as speculation continued that pressure from Yahoo's shareholders would revive takeover talks. Shares of Microsoft, which abandoned its bid for Yahoo at the weekend, ended at $29.70, while Yahoo closed at $25.72.

But higher energy costs threatened to crimp consumer spending. Wal-Mart Stores Inc <WMT.N>, the world's biggest retailer, was the top drag on the Dow. Wal-Mart's stock fell1.1 percent to $56.35.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, June crude <CLM8> settled at $121.84 a barrel, up $1.87, or a gain of 1.56 percent for the session. Earlier, NYMEX June crude climbed as high as a record $122.73 a barrel, which eclipsed Monday's intraday record of $120.36.

Compared with a year ago, U.S. crude oil futures prices are up $59.91 a barrel -- or almost 97 percent.

Volume on the New York Stock Exchange was modest, with about 1.23 billion shares changing hands, below last year's estimated daily average of 1.90 billion. On the Nasdaq, about 2.21 billion shares traded, above last year's daily average of 2.17 billion.

Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a ratio of almost 2 to 1, while on the Nasdaq, about three stocks rose for every two that fell. (Editing by Jan Paschal) ((Ellis.Mnyandu@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 6085; Reuters Messaging:ellis.mnyandu.reuters.com@reuters.net)) ((Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: * 3000 Xtra: visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com * BridgeStation: view story .134 For more information on Top News: http://topnews.reuters.com)) Keywords: MARKETS STOCKS

UPDATE 4-High-flying crude gives boost to Toronto stocks

Reuters: [2008-05-06 23:10:00]

(Adds details, quotes)

By Leah Schnurr

TORONTO, May 6 (Reuters) - Oil and gas companies led the way higher for the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday, helping the main index climb nearly 1 percent as crude oil prices notched another record high.

Suncor Energy <SU.TO> was among the biggest gainers, up C$4.62, or 4 percent, at C$121.12 as the price of oil flew up over $122 a barrel on a weaker U.S. dollar and concerns over supply.

The Toronto market's heavily weighted energy sector jumped 3.3 percent. Canadian Natural Resources <CNQ.TO> was up C$4.05, or 4.6 percent, at C$92.00, and Canadian Oil Sands Trust <COS_u.TO> added C$3.68, or 8.3 percent, to C$48.18.

Crude settled up $1.87 at $121.84 a barrel, easing back from a record $122.73 reached earlier in the day. However, Goldman Sachs forecast oil could hit $200 a barrel within the next two years.

"How high can it go? Who knows," said Andrew Martyn, portfolio manager at Davis-Rea.

The S&P/TSX composite index <.GSPTSE> closed up 139.96 points, or 0.98 percent, at 14,414.30 with half its 10 main sectors higher.

The materials sector, home to resource issues, rallied 1.2 percent, while the base metals mining subindex gained 2.4 percent, pulled up by oil's momentum. Teck Cominco <TCKb.TO> rose C$1.48, or 3.2 percent, to C$48.18.

"The mining sector, the gold sector also got boosted, meaning that the whole commodities game seems to be back for who knows how long," said Ian Nakamoto, director of research at MacDougall, MacDougall & MacTier.

"We keep saying it's a fad, but (the oil price) comes down and starts to move back up," said Nakamoto, noting that ultimately it's underlying supply and demand that will make a price level sustainable.

Methanex <MX.TO> shares jumped C$3.02, or 12.4 percent, to C$27.40 after the methanol supplier upped its quarterly dividend by 11 percent and said it will buy back up to 10 percent of its common stock.

Fertilizer company Potash Corp of Saskatchewan <POT.TO> was up C$3.03, or 1.5 percent, at C$199.39, and competitor Agrium <AGU.TO> rose C$2.52, or 3 percent, to C$86.75.

Sun Life Financial <SLF.TO> weighed on the index after the insurer warned of a difficult year ahead as it reported that credit market troubles and a strong Canadian dollar stung its operating earnings.

Sun Life finished down C$1.76, or 3.6 percent, at C$47.44, while the financial sector overall gave up 0.5 percent.

Also on the downside, BlackBerry maker Research In Motion <RIM.TO> slid C$2.37, or 1.8 percent, to C$132.25.

Market volume was 393 million shares worth C$7.6 billion. Advancers outpaced decliners 890 to 693. The blue chip S&P/TSX 60 index <.TSE60> closed up 8.71 points, or 1.03 percent, at 855.12.

On Wall Street, stocks rallied after U.S. home finance company Fannie Mae <FNM.N> sought to reassure investors over the outlook for the credit and housing markets.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 51.29 points, or 0.4 percent, to 13,020.83, while the Nasdaq composite index <.IXIC> was up 19.19 points, or 0.78 percent, at 2,483.31. ($1=$1.00 Canadian) (Editing by Rob Wilson) ((leah.schnurr@thomsonreuters.com; +1 416 941 8056; Reuters Messaging: leah.schnurr.reuters.net@reuters.com))

Keywords: MARKETS CANADA STOCKS

Keywords: MARKETS CANADA STOCKS

UPDATE 3-Toronto stocks boosted by soaring crude price

Reuters: [2008-05-06 22:39:00]

(Updates closing numbers, adds details)

TORONTO, May 6 (Reuters) - Oil and gas companies led the way up for the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday, helping the main index climb nearly 1 percent as crude oil prices notched another record high.

Suncor Energy <SU.TO> was among the biggest gainers, up C$4.62, or 4 percent, at C$121.12 as the price of oil flew up over $122 a barrel due to a weaker U.S. dollar and concerns over supply.

The Toronto market's heavily weighted energy sector jumped 3.3 percent. Canadian Natural Resources <CNQ.TO> was up C$4.05, or 4.6 percent, at C$92.00, and Canadian Oil Sands Trust <COS_u.TO> added C$3.68, or 8.3 percent, to C$48.18.

Crude settled up $1.87 at $121.84 a barrel, easing back from the record $122.73 it reached earlier in the day.

The S&P/TSX composite index <.GSPTSE> closed up 139.96 points, or 0.98 percent, at 14,414.30 with half of its 10 main sectors higher.

The materials sector, which houses resource shares, rallied 1.2 percent, while the base metals mining subindex gained 2.4 percent, pulled up by oil's momentum. Teck Cominco <TCKb.TO> rose C$1.48, or 3.2 percent, to C$48.18.

Methanex <MX.TO> shares jumped C$3.02, or 12.4 percent, to C$27.40 after the Methanol supplier upped its quarterly dividend by 11 percent and said it will buy back up to 10 percent of its common stock.

Fertilizer company Potash Corp of Saskatchewan <POT.TO> was up C$3.03, or 1.5 percent, at C$199.39, and competitor Agrium <AGU.TO> rose C$2.52, or 3 percent, to C$86.75.

Sun Life Financial <SLF.TO> dragged on the index after the insurer warned of a challenging year ahead as it reported credit market troubles and a strong Canadian dollar stung its operating earnings. Sun Life finished down C$1.76, or 3.6 percent, at C$47.44, while the financial sector overall gave up 0.5 percent. ($1=$1.00 Canadian) (Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Editing by Peter Galloway) ((leah.schnurr@thomsonreuters.com; +1 416 941 8056; Reuters Messaging: leah.schnurr.reuters.net@reuters.com))

Keywords: MARKETS CANADA STOCKS

. Keywords: MARKETS CANADA STOCKS

US STOCKS-Wall St jumps on Fannie, oil; Disney up late

Reuters: [2008-05-06 22:37:00]

(Updates to close)

By Ellis Mnyandu

NEW YORK, May 6 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday as Fannie Mae's <FNM.N> reassuring comments about the credit and housing markets buoyed financial shares, while record crude oil prices lifted shares of energy companies.

Speculation that Microsoft Corp <MSFT.O> could resume takeover talks with Yahoo Inc <YHOO.O> fed a rebound in technology shares. Yahoo gained 5.5 percent, while Microsoft rose 2.1 percent, leading the S&P 500's advance.

After an early retreat, the session turned positive when top executives of Fannie Mae, the largest U.S. home finance company, said the worst of the credit market turmoil erupting from the real estate slowdown may have passed. That mitigated earlier concern about its huge quarterly loss, and propelled a broad rally in financial stocks.

Fannie Mae climbed almost 9 percent, and smaller rival Freddie Mac <FRE.N> gained 7.1 percent.

Oil struck above $122 a barrel for the first time, carrying energy shares higher with it and outweighing a retreat in sectors sensitive to high fuel costs, such as airlines and retailers.

"When I came to work today, we thought Fannie Mae's stock will be trading south of $25, but somehow the investing public got news that they had a pretty positive conference call," said Angel Mata, managing director of listed equity trading at Stifel Nicolaus Capital Markets in Baltimore, Maryland.

"There's a lot of people that are eyeing the financials right now, so if you're going to play the financials, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have to be among them."

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> finished up 51.29 points, or 0.40 percent, at 13,020.83. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> ended up 10.77 points, or 0.77 percent, at 1,418.26. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> closed up 19.19 points, or 0.78 percent, at 2,483.31.

Immediately after the closing bell, there was more encouraging news that could help stocks extend their advance. Walt Disney Co <DIS.N> posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit, sending its shares up more than 3 percent in after-hours trade from their close at $33.73 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Disney, one of the world's largest media companies and owner of the ABC television network, ESPN all-sports cable TV network and Disney theme parks in Florida and southern California, is seen as a bellwether of consumer spending.

Cisco Systems Inc's <CSCO.O> shares jumped more than 2 percent after the bell from their Nasdaq close of $26.33 as the network equipment maker also posted a profit that topped estimates.

In the regular session, Fannie Mae shares finished at $30.81, while Freddie Mac shares closed at $27.33. Other financial standouts were insurer American International Group Inc <AIG.N>, which rose 2.1 percent to $48.40, and JPMorgan Chase & Co <JPM.N>, the No. 3 U.S. bank, whose stock added 0.4 percent to $48.20.

The optimism from Fannie Mae's comments also contributed to a rise in the shares of home builders, with the Dow Jones home construction index <.DJUSHB> up 2 percent for the day.

Shares of D.R. Horton Inc <DHI.N>, the largest U.S. home builder, jumped 5.5 percent to $16.85 even as the company posted a quarterly loss of $1.3 billion and halved its dividend. For details, see [ID:nN06454667]

Energy shares rose after U.S. crude oil hit a record above $122 a barrel. A stronger-than-expected profit from independent oil and gas company Anadarko Petroleum Corp <APC.N> also buoyed the energy sector.

Exxon Mobil shares rose 0.6 percent to $90.07, while ConocoPhillips <COP.N> climbed 1.8 percent to $88.74 and Chevron Corp's <CVX.N> shares gained 1.3 percent to $96.87, while Anadarko shares climbed 9.4 percent to $74.53.

Shares of oil services company Schlumberger Ltd <SLB.N> jumped 2 percent to $103.58. The oil index <.OIX> shot up 3.3 percent.

Investment bank Goldman Sachs <GS.N> said in a research note that the price of oil could shoot up to $200 a barrel within the next two years as part of a "super-spike" driven by poor growth in oil supplies.

"Energy prices are going to stay high until -- a) we get some production on line, which there's none that I know of -- or b) until we have a serious recession," said Sasha Kostadinov, portfolio manager at Shaker Investments in Cleveland, Ohio.

Microsoft Corp <MSFT.O> and Yahoo Inc <YHOO.O> were both among the Nasdaq's top five advancers as speculation continued that pressure from Yahoo's shareholders would revive takeover talks. Shares of Microsoft, which abandoned its bid for Yahoo at the weekend, ended at $29.70, while Yahoo closed at $25.72.

But higher energy costs threatened to crimp consumer spending. Wal-Mart Stores Inc <WMT.N>, the world's biggest retailer, was the top drag on the Dow. Wal-Mart's stock fell1.1 percent to $56.35.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, June crude <CLM8> settled at $121.84 a barrel, up $1.87, or a gain of 1.56 percent for the session. Earlier, NYMEX June crude climbed as high as a record $122.73 a barrel, which eclipsed Monday's intraday record of $120.36.

Compared with a year ago, U.S. crude oil futures prices are up $59.91 a barrel -- or almost 97 percent. (Editing by Jan Paschal) ((Ellis.Mnyandu@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 6085; Reuters Messaging:ellis.mnyandu.reuters.com@reuters.net)) ((Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: * 3000 Xtra: visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com * BridgeStation: view story .134 For more information on Top News: http://topnews.reuters.com)) Keywords: MARKETS STOCKS

UPDATE 4-Nigeria oil rebels pledge truce if Carter mediates

Reuters: [2008-05-06 22:14:00]

(Updates with Carter statement, paragraphs 3-5)

By Daniel Flynn

LAGOS, May 6 (Reuters) - Niger Delta rebels promised on Tuesday to halt attacks on the oil industry if the Nigerian government would allow former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to act as a mediator.

The rebel Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), whose campaign of violence helped lift oil prices to a new record on Tuesday, said Carter had accepted its offer to mediate in the conflict "on the condition that the Nigerian government and any other relevant stake holder invites him."

But the Carter Center, which speaks on behalf of the former president, said it was "premature" to say that Carter had accepted an invitation to mediate.

"The Carter Center's correspondence with MEND emphasized that President Carter would seriously consider undertaking a mission if he were formally invited by all relevant stakeholders in the Niger Delta conflict," said a statement by the center, which is based in Atlanta.

"In addition to MEND, this would include the Federal Government of Nigeria and others whose interests would have to be represented in such a negotiation," it said.

MEND's campaign of violence has cut output in Africa's largest oil producer by around a fifth. It publicly approached Carter earlier this year to act as a negotiator.

"We are ready to call off all hostilities and hold a temporary cease-fire in honor of President Carter should the Nigerian government accept President Carter's initiative," MEND said in an e-mailed statement.

"However, if as expected, the government fails to seize on this new opportunity for peace, our actions will continue to speak volumes beyond the Nigerian shores."

Carter failed in a previous attempt to mediate in the Delta in 1999 and is familiar to many senior members of the different militant factions.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack could not confirm Carter's potential mediation role but said there were already "mechanisms" in place to deal with political grievances in the Niger Delta.

"We believe the Nigerian government should also avail itself to those mechanisms," said McCormack who indicated some irritation with Carter's diplomatic role there.

The State Department strongly opposed Carter's recent meetings with the Palestinian militant group Hamas and advised the former president against seeing them.

OIL JITTERS

The bombing of a Royal Dutch Shell flowstation in the southern Nigerian state of Bayelsa on Saturday -- which caused little damage to oil infrastructure -- marked MEND's fifth strike in just over a month. The attacks are expected to worsen with the trial of militant leader Henry Okah beginning next month, analysts say.

Oil hit a record high of $122 a barrel, lifted by fears of fresh militant strikes in Nigeria, supply concerns in Iran and a forecast from Goldman Sachs that it may hit $200 a barrel due to lagging supply growth.

MEND has accused Nigerian authorities of mistreating Okah, who was deported from Angola in February, and denying him access to his lawyers.

"There is definitely a link to the Henry Okah trial in the resurgent violence," said one security analyst in Nigeria. "How it develops will depend on how they treat Okah and the final decision at the trial."

The militant group, which is split between a number of different factions, dismissed the stalled Niger Delta Summit organized by President Umaru Yar'Adua in an effort to bring peace to the vast, lawless swampland. It said it would not attend a meeting later this year in the capital Abuja.

"The Niger Delta Summit is failing because the government is talking to the wrong people," said Rolake Akinola, senior analyst for West Africa at Control Risks.

"It is a problem of Yar'Adua's leadership style." (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http:/africa.reuters.com/ )

(Additional reporting by Matthew Bigg in Atlanta) (Editing by Chris Wilson) ((daniel.flynn@reuters.com; +221 864 5076; Reuters messaging: daniel.flynn.reuters.com@reuters.net, Dakar Newsroom +221 33 864 5076)) Keywords: NIGERIA REBELS/