US STOCKS-AT&T Wall Street

AT&T Inc's offer for Deutsche Telekom AG's T-Mobile USA,sparked a rally in European telecom shares

The market volatility index .VIX fell 16.2 percent, its biggest daily percentage drop since May, and was trading below its 14- and 200-day moving averages for the first time since the earthquake in Japan.

Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by 2,458 to 546, while on the Nasdaq, advancers beat decliners 2,048 to 574.

Buyers emerged on Monday in US stocks, enticed by the biggest proposed merger of the year, though crises in Japan, the Middle East and North Africa meant market volatility would continue. Wall Street stocks rose on Monday, as a $39 billion telecom deal overcame concerns about a surge in oil prices resulting from continuing Western military action in Libya and unrest in the Middle East.

Multiple notable acquisitions, including AT&T's $39 billion deal to buy T-Mobile, fueled broad gains for Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 178 points, or 1.5%, to 12037, the S&P 500 climbed 19.2 points, or 1.5%, ...

US Stocks Close Higher For 3rd Straight Session, Aided By Dea