UNITED STATES

The U.S. space shuttle Atlantis was hit by a piece of debris that nicked part of its heat shield that caused a 21-inch stretch of nicks, although Nasa said that the damage did not appear to be serious.

As the market for U.S. office, retail and apartment building loans heads south, investors in commercial mortgage-backed securities and servicers of the loans are feuding over how to best save their skins.

Several large U.S. banks undertook big capital-raising efforts on Tuesday, hoping to satisfy regulators who want bigger cushions against a deep recession, or proof that they have enough of a buffer already.

General Motors Corp shares hit there lowest level since the Great Depression on Tuesday and Nissan Motor Co posted a loss and expected more amid the deep global auto downturn.

Chrysler LLC will offer new buyouts to factory workers at seven of its eight U.S. plants slated for closure under its bankruptcy plans, the United Auto Workers union said on Tuesday.

A recovery in the U.S. housing sector could be as much as two years away, the head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said on Tuesday.

The Dow rose on Tuesday as investors scooped up defensive shares, including Pfizer , while energy companies' stocks climbed as oil hit a six-month high.

U.S. President Barack Obama will urge Palestinian, Israeli and Egyptian leaders to take the steps necessary to achieve peace in the Middle East when they visit Washington this month, the White House said on Tuesday.

Helicopter-borne Pakistani soldiers swooped into a Taliban stronghold in a remote corner of Swat on Tuesday as the United Nations urged help for hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the fighting.

Oil rose to a six-month high on Tuesday on optimism an economic recovery may prompt rising fuel demand and on buying to hedge against a weaker U.S. dollar.

The Department of Energy granted $25 million to the state of Massachusetts to accelerate the development of a facility that once completed will become the first commercial facility in the United States able to test wind turbine blades longer than 50 meters.

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Tuesday that the seeds of a bottoming in plunging U.S. home markets were becoming visible.

General Electric Co plans to invest $100 million in a factory to build high-tech batteries for heavy equipment, which it believes could be a $1 billion business over the next decade.

Several large U.S. banks undertook big capital-raising efforts on Tuesday, hoping to satisfy regulators who want to see a bigger cushion against a deep recession, or proof that they have enough of a buffer already.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell on Tuesday on profit taking in financials and technology, while a drop in U.S. exports and fresh stock sales by various companies damped investor enthusiasm.

Pageant owner, Donald Trump, announced on Tuesday that Miss California USA, Carrie Prejean, can keep her crown despite all the controversies that surround her regarding her view on gay marriage and her pics in underwear.

The U.S. trade gap widened in March for the first time in eight months as exports fell 2.4 percent and imports dropped for the eighth consecutive month, a U.S. government report showed on Tuesday.

Citigroup Inc said on Tuesday that the committee overseeing its use of $45 billion of taxpayer money had approved the use of nearly all of that sum to make loans.

Stocks fell on Tuesday as investors took profits in the technology and banking sectors while a drop in U.S. exports in March and multiple stock offerings from various companies dampened enthusiasm.

The new H1N1 flu virus could still mutate into a more virulent form and spark an influenza pandemic that could be expected to circle the globe up to three times, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday.

General Motors Corp stock plunged more than 22 percent to a 76-year low on Tuesday, a day after GM's top executives dumped their shares as the automaker heads toward a bankruptcy or a restructuring that would all but wipe out existing shareholders.