U.S. Congress could move quickly on Blackstone bill

(Reuters) - Backers of the bill were expected to spend the immediate future weighing reaction to it, with an eye on the narrowing window for legislation ahead of a scheduled August recess and the 2008 election campaigns kicking into high gear.




An aide to Montana Democratic Sen. Max Baucus, one of the bill's co-authors, said, "There's no immediate timetable for action, but we'll move forward as appropriate."


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

U.S. Stocks Rally, S&P 500 Rises Most in Eight Weeks; GM, Alcoa Pace Gains

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rallied and the
Standard and Poor's 500 Index posted its best weekly gain
since April after bond yields fell from a five-year high
and the Federal Reserve said the economy is growing without
fueling inflation.

General Motors Corp., Alcoa Inc. and Intel Corp.
helped push the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average to
within 0.5 percent of records. Exxon Mobil Corp., the
world's largest oil company, led energy shares to the best
gain among 10 industry groups in the S&P 500 as crude
prices climbed to the highest since September.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News