New York  - US stocks rose Tuesday as the construction of new homes in the United States unexpectedly surged in February and investors speculated about Federal Reserve efforts to bolster the economy.

Privately owned housing starts in February were 583,000 at an annual rate, up 22 per cent from January but still down 47.3 per cent from the same month in 2008, the Commerce Department said. Economists had expected a further monthly decline to 450,000 last month, according to a Bloomberg News survey.

New York  - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday called on all parties in troubled Madagascar to behave responsibly and carry out a "smooth transition through democratic means."

"This peaceful path can only be the result of transitional arrangement arrived at by consensus and enjoying wide support," Ban said in a statement.

New York  - The UN Security Council on Tuesday praised the European Union for a well-done mission in the region between Chad and the Central African Republic, where an estimated 500,000 refugees need protection and aid.

The EU mission ended its one-year mission on Sunday and was replaced by UN peacekeeping operation composed of 5,200 military troops, drawn mostly from the departing EU military components.

New York  - UN General Assembly President Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann launched yet another campaign on Tuesday against Western governments, urging them to stop demonizing Iran and its leader, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who has called for wiping Israel off the map.

Miguel d'Escoto, a former Sandinista foreign minister of Nicaragua in the 1980s and a Roman Catholic Maryknoll priest, has advocated reform and "democratization" of the United Nations since he assumed leadership of the 192-nation assembly last September.

New York, Mar 17: When American singer-songwriter Kelly Clarkson boasted that she could “talk about anything”, she was not joking.

Clarkson, 26, revealed about her health and personal hygiene, and also said that she never lied.

“I’ll talk about anything!” the New York Daily News quoted her as saying.

“I do not lie. Ever. I will tell my girlfriend if she looks fat in her jeans,” she added.

The first ‘American Idol’ also revealed to Blender magazine her tendency to use her shower to go tinkle.

New York, Mar 17: A new Web site has been launched, which helps people locate medical marijuana.