Debt prices plummet, dollar gains… U.S. stocks fall on profit-taking but rise in Europe…  Dollar at 3-week high vs euro on hopes for stimulus plan… Oil gains as Gaza fighting raises Mideast supply worries.

CenturyTel Inc. (CTL) will acquire rival Embarq Corp. (EQ) in an $11.6 billion deal that could kick-start a flurry of mergers among rural-regional telephone carriers. The deal should be good for the two companies, said Jeff Kagan, an independent analyst who is well known for his coverage of the telecom sector.

Although the private sector has thrown off its initial fears of being swamped if exposed to foreign competition, the Government and the bureaucracy continue to harbour a fear of a repeat of the East India company.

The rally continues, spurred by an RBI credit policy which did not change interest rates but hiked CRR by 25 basis points to suck out some more liquidity and by some encouraging corporate results, such as those of DLF which made a fourth quarter profit of a whopping Rs 2176 crores!