YAHOO [BRIEFING.COM]: Stocks staged their best single-session performance in more than two weeks on strong volume this session. That has helped the S&P 500 move closer to its fourth straight weekly gain and best monthly performance in more than 20 years. Amid the action the Volatility Index, frequently labeled the Fear Gauge, dove to its lowest level in more than two months. Since the start of the month it is down more than 40%.

Buying today was primarily driven by news that the European Union plans to improving financial conditions in their continent by increasing the eurozone bailout fund to about $1.4 trillion, recapitalizing banks, and agreeing to cut Greece's debt obligations by 50%. The announcement removes an element of uncertainty related the financial troubles that have troubled the continent for so long.

Bolstered by the plan, the euro ripped higher in one of its best one-day performances of the year. As of the close of trade, it was up 2.3% to $1.419, setting a multi-week high on its way. The yen also gained ground against the greenback, too, even though Japan's central bank recently reduced its forecast for the country's economy and added 5 trillion yen to an asset purchase program that now stands at 55 trillion yen. By session's end the yen was up 0.3% to 75.96 yen per dollar.

The dollar didn't even benefit from an advance reading that showed the U.S. economy expanded by 2.5% during the third quarter, exceeding the 2.3% growth rate that had been broadly expected to follow the 1.3% increase recorded for the prior quarter.

Initial jobless claims for the week ended October 22 totaled 402,000, just as had been expected among economists polled by Briefing.com. The latest weekly tally is hardly changed from the 404,000 initial claims filed during the prior week.

Pending home sales for September made up the only other item on the economic calendar. They proved disappointing because of a 4.6%, which was worse than the 0.9% decline that had been expected to follow the 1.2% downturn endured during the prior month.

Although earnings haven't garnered a great deal of attention amid all of the turmoil and uncertainty that has surrounded the eurozone for so long, but market participants were dealt a big batch of reports. The majority of them exceeded expectations. Visa (V 94.40, +2.38), Akamai Tech (AKAM 27.45, +3.67), Bristol-Meyers Squibb (BMY 32.99, +0.48), and Colgate-Palmolive (CL 91.33, +0.79) all bested predictions for the bottom line. Procter & Gamble (PG 65.26, +0.31) and Exxon Mobil (XOM 81.88, +0.81) both matched the consensus. One of the few issues that failed to benefit from the broad market's bounce, Avon Products (AVP 18.81, -4.20) dropped precipitously in response to an earnings miss and news that it has received a subpoena from the SEC.

Weakness in the dollar, coupled with uncertainty about the details of the European debt deal, helped precious metals rally for a fifth consecutive session. Gold ended higher by 1.4% at $1747.70 per ounce, while silver finished up 5.3% at $35.12 per ounce. The last minute deal reached in the euro zone left many questions about how the plan will play out and that helped gold and silver prices trade to fresh ~1 month highs.

Natural gas ended lower by 0.3% at $3.76 per MMBtu. Futures sold off following this morning's slighty larger-than-expected inventory data. Natural gas did manage to rebound but were unable to hold onto gains to end just below the flat line. Crude oil ended higher by 4.1% to $93.96 per barrel. Futures rallied on weakness in the dollar and strength in equities following the EU debt deal. They ended just shy of session highs at $94.25.

Advancing Sectors: Financials +6.2%, Materials +5.3%, Industrials +4.4%, Energy +3.9%, Tech +3.1%, Consumer Discretionary +2.7%, Telecom +2.5%, Health Care +2.2%, Utilities +2.1%, Consumer Staples +1.3%
Declining Sectors: (None)DJ30 +339.51 NASDAQ +87.96 NQ100 +2.8% R2K +5.3% SP400 +4.3% SP500 +42.59 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 2202/2.81 bln/435 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2714/1.43 bln/366