US STOCKS-Wall St buoyed by weak dollar, Fed hopes

                                
  
                                
 * Dollar pressure boosts equities after G20 meeting
                                
 * Commodities also benefit from greenback weakness
                                
 * September existing-home sales rise more than expected
                                
 * Dow up 0.7 pct, S&P up 0.6 pct, Nasdaq up 0.9 pct
                                
 * For up-to-the-minute market news see [STXNEWS/US]
  (Updates to late afternoon, changes byline)
                                
 By Chuck Mikolajczak
                                
 NEW YORK, Oct 25 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Monday as
a falling dollar and expectations of further monetary easing by
the Federal Reserve prompted investors to buy riskier assets.
                                
 The slide in the greenback continued after a weekend
meeting of the Group of 20 stopped short of setting targets to
reduce trade imbalances. Anticipation the Fed will stimulate
growth via quantitative easing has weakened the dollar, which
in turn has lifted commodity prices. For details, see
[ID:nTOE69M004] [ID:nTOE69K01G]
                                
 Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc <FCX.N> advanced 2.6
percent to $96.06 while oil refiner Holly Corp <HOC.N> gained
3.4 percent to $33.35. The S&P materials sector <.GSPM> gained
2 percent.
                                
 Equities and the dollar have developed an inverse
relationship, so as the dollar comes under pressure, equities
often rise. Since September, the S&P has risen about 13
percent. For a Q+A, see [ID:nN2199257]
                                
 "We have a lower dollar, we have low and benign interest
rates, and you can't beat that combination for reflating the
economy or stock prices," said Hugh Johnson, chief investment
officer of Hugh Johnson Advisors LLC in Albany, New York.
                                
 "The real question is not so much are we going to get the
effects of the promise of quantitative easing, such as the
lower dollar and benign interest rates -- we've got that -- the
question is will it work, and the message of the markets is
that it will work."
                                
 The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> gained 75.12
points, or 0.67 percent, to 11,207.68. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> climbed 6.92 points, or 0.58 percent, to
1,190.00. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> rose 21.00 points,
or 0.85 percent, to 2,500.39.
                                
 In a research report, Goldman Sachs said the Federal Open
Market Committee is almost certain to announce renewed monetary
easing at its Nov. 2-3 meeting.
                                
 Goldman analysts calculated the Fed may have to buy up to
$4 trillion in assets to achieve desired growth and inflation
targets.
                                
 Further boosting materials stocks was Eastman Chemical Co
<EMN.N>, which climbed 5.4 percent to $82.87 after it agreed to
sell three plants to Mexican conglomerate Alfa <ALFAA.MX> for
$600 million. [ID:nN25265406]
                                
 Both Office Depot Inc <ODP.N> and tobacco company Lorillard
Inc <LO.N> rallied after posting stronger-than-expected
profits. Office Depot also said that its embattled chief
executive would be stepping down, sending the stock up 7.3
percent to $4.97. Lorillard advanced 1.6 percent to $85.41.
[ID:nN25221945] [ID:nN25191964]
                                
 D.R. Horton Inc <DHI.N> gained 1.1 percent to $10.73 after
data showed existing-home sales rose more than expected in
September. [ID:nN25265199]
 (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Kenneth Barry)