Stocks soar as U.S. to buy bank stakes

By Eddie Evans NEW YORK (Reuters) - Governments around the world bet hundreds of billions of dollars to rescue failing banks on Monday, sending world stocks soaring and giving Wall Street its biggest one-day gain ever. Britain, Germany, France and other European countries pledged more than 1 trillion euros ($1.36 trillion) for bank guarantees and equity stakes, while U.S. officials said they were finalizing a similar plan. The Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P 500 index raced to an 11 percent gain, their biggest ever, after recording their worst week in history last week amid panic over collapsing banks and fears that major economies were headed towards recession. European stocks soared 10 percent. "Sometime last week it seemed like we faced Armageddon, so... [read full story]