* World stocks fall 0.7 pct; U.S. stocks firm slightly
* Euro eases, U.S. Treasuries slip
* Concerns weigh about plans for euro zone rescue fund
By Caroline Valetkevitch
NEW YORK, Oct 20 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks and the euro rose
on Thursday after France and Germany said they would press
ahead with work on solving the euro zone debt crisis despite
setbacks that meant the details might not be settled at a
weekend European Union summit.
France and Germany jointly confirmed euro zone leaders will
discuss a solution at a weekend summit.
Earlier, a German media report that Germany had not ruled
out postponing Sunday's summit poured more cold water on
optimism over the weekend meeting of EU leaders in Brussels.
The news out of Europe kept investors on their toes, and
markets bouncing from one direction to another. Worries that
the region's debt problems could cause another global recession
have been at the forefront for months.
"There is still a lot left that they need to decide on and
sort out. We still don't know how this is going to be
structured and how much of this safety net will be
replenished," said Bryant Evans, portfolio manager at Cozad
Asset Management in Champaign, Illinois.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed up slightly while
world stocks as measured by MSCI <.MIWD00000PUS> fell 0.7
percent and European shares <.FTEU3> ended down 1.4 percent.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> unofficially ended
up 34.74 points, or 0.30 percent, at 11,539.36.
The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> unofficially ended up 5.41 points, or
0.45 percent, at 1,215.29. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC>
unofficially closed down 5.42 points, or 0.21 percent, at
2,598.62.
U.S. Treasury prices turned down on the joint statement
from France and Germany. Benchmark 10-year notes <US10YT=RR>
erased early gains and fell 7/32 point in price to yield 2.18
percent.
The euro <EUR=> was still lower against the dollar. It was
last down 0.2 percent at $1.3731.
Citing sources from both the center-right coalition of
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and from her government, German
newspaper Die Welt said the possible delay was due to stalled
negotiations on the possible leveraging of the euro zone
bailout fund.
