U.S.

Stocks in U.S. Advance on Anniversary of 2009 Bear-Market Low for S&P 500 U.S. stocks rose on the anniversary of the 2009 bear-market low for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index amid speculation the economy will continue to recover from the worst contraction since the Great Depression.

Derivatives Regulation Urged by EU, Merkel as Greece Takes Plea to Obama The European Union’s top regulatory official said the bloc will consider banning “purely speculative” credit-default swaps as German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for a crackdown on derivatives trading to prevent a rerun of the Greek financial crisis.

General Growth Backers Add $3.9 Billion to Boost Brookfield's Revival Plan General Growth Properties Inc. said its biggest debt and equity holders offered to jointly invest $3.93 billion in the company, bolstering a plan with Brookfield Asset Management Inc. to bring the mall owner out of bankruptcy.

Eaton Vance Dumps Dirt Bonds Worth 30 Cents on Dollar as Districts Default Thomas Metzold, Eaton Vance Corp.’s co-head of municipals, sold all his defaulted bonds of Tison’s Landing, an unfinished housing development in Jacksonville, Florida, as the debt fell to a third of face value last year.

Sack Says Fed Selling Assets Would Risk Sudden Increase in Long-Term Rates Brian Sack, the New York Federal Reserve Bank’s markets chief, said reducing the central bank’s $2.3 trillion balance sheet quickly through sales of assets would risk a sudden increase in long-term interest rates.

Toyota Reviewing California Report of Stuck Gas Pedal in Prius Hybrid Car Toyota Motor Corp., struggling to regain a reputation for quality after unintended acceleration forced millions of vehicle recalls, will investigate a report in California of a Prius hybrid car that sped out of control.

Latin America

Colombia's Proteccion to Invest $1.3 Billion in Private Equity After Rally Proteccion SA, Colombia’s second- biggest pension fund, plans to invest 2.4 trillion pesos ($1.3 billion) in private equity in the next two years after reaching the government-set limit on stocks.

Sell Brazil Bonds Ahead of Election, Buy Mexico Debt, Bank of America Says Bank of America Corp. recommended selling Brazil’s debt before October’s presidential election and buying Mexican dollar-denominated bonds on the outlook for a U.S. economic recovery and oil revenue.

Telefonica, Vivendi, Oi Should Seek Integration in Brazil, Bernstein Says Telefonica SA, Vivendi SA and Tele Norte Leste Participacoes SA should each seek to integrate their fixed-line operations in Brazil with a local mobile-phone company, Bernstein Research said in report today.

Brazil's CSN May Spin Off Five Units to Boost Value, CEO Steinbruch Says Cia. Siderurgica Nacional SA, Brazil’s third-largest steelmaker, said it may spin off its mining, steel, energy, logistics and cement businesses. Shares rose to the highest in 20 months.

Mexico's February Consumer Prices Climb 0.58%, Topping Analysts' Forecasts Mexico’s consumer prices rose more than economists forecast in February as costs increased for housing, local phone service and onions.

Brazil Stocks Rally to Highest Since January as Steelmakers, Builders Gain Brazilian stocks rallied to the highest since January as steelmakers and homebuilders gained on the prospects for higher sales as the economy improves.

Exclusive

Exxon Lowers Investment Bar, Buys Projects Previously Deemed Too Piddling Exxon Mobil Corp., BP Plc and Total SA are investing in assets that previously weren’t worth their time or money after oil-rich nations reduced access to reserves and exploration drilling faltered.

`Cinderella' Wine Valley Razed by Chile Quake Signals Bankrupt Vineyards Chile’s strongest earthquake in 50 years may bankrupt smaller winemakers after vines collapsed, casks broke apart and millions of liters were spilled, a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. banker-turned-winemaker said.

City of London Developers to Start Skyscrapers as Rents End Two-Year Drop Brookfield Asset Management Inc., owner of a stake in the U.K.’s tallest building, is about to start constructing an even higher tower in the City of London.

Cadillac Plays Down GM Ties to Avoid Bankruptcy Stigma, Craft Own Identity Cadillac, the luxury brand General Motors Co. acquired in 1909, is distancing itself from the Detroit-based automaker to avoid the stigma of the parent company’s $50 billion U.S.-backed bankruptcy last year.

Pound's Slide to Help U.K. Outpace Euro Economies, Goldman's Nielsen Says The pound’s drop last week to a 10- month low may help the U.K. economy grow faster than the region sharing the euro, which is hobbled by budget deficits and aging populations, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Gates $44 million Ethanol Loss Before Rebound Means More Profit for Valero Ethanol, the commodity that cost Bill Gates more than $44 million the last time prices collapsed, is poised to rally as much as 20 percent as the fastest drop since 2008 spurs demand.