Danny Puff

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index finished short of a 10-month high on Monday as investor optimism for Research In Motion Ltd shares over the upcoming launch of its BlackBerry 10 devices was offset by falling energy shares.

Weakness in the materials sector, which includes mining stocks, also added pressure, while volatile oil prices were a drag on the energy sector. The two heavyweight sectors kept an otherwise positive index in check.

RIM shares extended a 13-percent gain made on Friday. The stock added 10.44 percent to C$14.70 and helped the information technology sector gain 2.48 percent.

"The investor confidence is brought about simply because of hope, and hope that the new BlackBerry 10 is going to be an answer to their prayers," said Fred Ketchen, director of equity trading at ScotiaMcLeod.

"There has been some talk that this is a revival of RIM. We'll have to wait and see," he added.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index finished little changed, up a 0.91 of a point, or 0.01 percent, at 12,603.09. Earlier, it touched 12,636.68, its highest since March 5, 2012.

The index, which marked its fifth consecutive day of gains, swung back and forth between positive and negative territories in choppy trade.

"There's a lot of indecisiveness out there. People don't really know which way to go and you're getting these markets that aren't really doing much of anything," said Julie Brough, vice president at Morgan Meighen & Associates.

Investors kept a close watch on the U.S. debt ceiling talks, seen as a significant catalyst for the markets, with hopes that a compromise will be reached. "There is reasonable optimism that it would be resolved," Brough said.

The energy sector was down 0.5 percent, with Canadian Natural Resources Ltd slipping 1.81 percent to C$29.26 and Talisman Energy Inc falling 2.64 percent to C$11.78. Oil prices were volatile, with Brent crude rising to $112 on supply concerns.

Encana Corp shares dropped 2.31 percent to C$19.05 after the surprise resignation of the chief executive officer of Canada's largest natural gas producer.

The three energy companies were the three biggest drags on the index.

Materials stocks, home to mining firms, was down 0.3 percent amid a slew of deals within the sector.

Miner Alamos Gold Inc said it will buy Aurizon Mines Ltd for about C$780 million ($793 million) in cash and stock to get access to Aurizon's only operating gold mine, Casa Berardi, in northern Quebec. Aurizon shares jumped 34 percent to C$4.57, while Alamos Gold fell 11.94 percent to C$14.90.

Russia's state uranium firm agreed to pay $1.3 billion to take Canada's Uranium One Inc private, as the successor to the Soviet Union's nuclear industry seeks to strengthen its grip on supplies. Uranium One's stock rose 14.52 percent to C$2.76.

In other company news, shares of Harry Winston Diamond Corp rose 4.41 percent to C$14.90 on the company's plans to sell its high-end watches-to-necklaces division to Swatch Group in a $750 million cash deal that expands the Swiss watchmaker's luxury offering and lets the Canadian group concentrate on its diamond mines.

(Additional reporting by Solarina Ho; Editing by James Dalgleish and Nick Zieminski)

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BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) Select "Downton Abbey" fans are in for an early viewing treat and bragging rights.

Apple said Monday that people in North America who hold iTunes season passes will be able to see this season's last three episodes of "Downton" before they air.

The period drama's second season was the best-selling TV series on iTunes last year, Apple said, without disclosing the numbers. The exclusive preview of a TV series is the first for iTunes, the company said.

The third season of "Downton Abbey" began Jan. 6 with an episode that drew nearly 8 million viewers, quadrupling PBS' average prime-time audience. The drama about British landed gentry and their household servants stars Hugh Bonneville, Dan Stevens and Michelle Dockery.

Episodes are available beginning Jan. 29 on iTunes. The season finale airs Feb. 17 on PBS' "Masterpiece" showcase.

Whether iTunes viewers can hold their tongues, spoilers about major plot twists already are out because the series has aired in Britain. That's raised questions about whether PBS should have aired "Downtown" concurrently with its ITV fall debut in the U.K.

Speaking to the Television Critics Association on Monday, PBS chief Paula Kerger said putting "Downton" in the teeth of the competitive U.S. fall TV season may not serve the show or its audience.

But PBS is keeping an eye on the situation and talking to stations and viewers about the issue, she said.

Asked if the strong initial viewership vindicated PBS' scheduling decision, Kerger called the ratings "a beautiful thing," but added it will be interesting to see how viewership continues through the show's run.

"Downton Abbey" is beginning production on its fourth season. Kerger refused to disclose any tidbits when asked if Shirley MacLaine would return as a newly introduced American relative to the Crawley family.

"I'm not telling you anything about season four. Don't trick me," Kerger said, smiling.

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BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) Public television is putting its resources into a week-long examination of the Connecticut school shooting.

PBS announced Monday it will air a series of programs under the umbrella title "After Newtown." The February series will "continue the public conversation" on the topics of gun laws, mental illness and school security, PBS said.

Programs including "PBS NewsHour," ''Frontline" and "Washington Week with Gwen Ifill" will be part of the initiative. The science series "Nova" will air a documentary on violence and the brain.

A "Frontline" report will examine the life of Adam Lanza, who shot his way into Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown on Dec. 14 and killed 20 first-graders and six adults before committing suicide.

PBS' "After Newtown" initiative airs Feb. 18 to 22 (check local listings for times).

At a meeting of the Television Critics Association, PBS chief Paula Kerger said public television has a different mission than other media outlets when such events occur.

"PBS is not where you go for breaking news. Where we can add to the conversation is to step back ... and say, 'OK, where are the big issues and where does this take us?'" Kerger said.

In moments of tragedy, "there's lot of fascination with the event itself," she said, while PBS asks about meaning and consequences and includes both the national and local impact.

"We can work with (public television) stations in every community in the country to organize discussions so it's not just a news feed that goes out into the ether," she said.

Given the uncertainty surrounding Lanza and his motives, Kerger was asked if she's confident the "Frontline" special will help illuminate the gunman.

She said she expects the program, being done in collaboration with The Hartford Courant, will tell a compelling story.

As with other network executives who took part in Q&A sessions at the TV critics' winter meeting, Kerger was asked about the media's responsibility in the depiction of violence.

"It certainly fits into the way we think about what's in front of kids" and the images they see on PBS children's shows, she said. As for prime-time, "the kind of programming you're talking about has not found its home on public television."

During their sessions, broadcast and cable networks promoted new and returning shows including Fox's "The Following," with Kevin Bacon chasing a grisly killer, CBS' "Criminal Minds" and Showtime's serial killer drama "Dexter," and network executives were asked about the media's role in violence.

Only FX President John Landgraf told the critics' group he was in favor of further study about any correlation between entertainment and real violence. Previous studies have been mixed.

On Tuesday, Vice President Joe Biden is scheduled to make recommendations to President Barack Obama on ways to curb violence, the result of a task force Biden was asked by Obama to lead after the Newtown tragedy.

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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Pop star Justin Timberlake unveiled on Sunday his first single in more than five years, "Suit & Tie," featuring rapper Jay Z and producer Timbaland and said a new album would be released later in 2013.

Timberlake, 31 and newly married to actress Jessica Biel, had teased his fans last week with a cryptic tweet saying "I think I am ready" and linking to a video showing him walk into a studio.

Timberlake, a six-time Grammy winner and former member of boy band N'Sync, took a break from music after his 2006 album "Futuresex/Lovesounds" and worked as an actor in movies such as "The Social Network."

He said in an open letter on his website that the new album is titled "The 20/20 Experience" but gave no further details.

(Reporting by Piya Sinha-Roy; Editing by Jon Boyle)

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BEVERLY HILLS, California (Reuters) - Hollywood actress Jodie Foster confirmed long-running speculation that she is gay by coming out at the Golden Globes awards on Sunday, but joked she wouldn't be holding a news conference to discuss her private life.

The notoriously private Foster stunned the audience of stars and Hollywood powerbrokers as she accepted a life-time achievement awarded by announcing she was now single.

"Seriously, I hope that you're not disappointed that there won't be a big-coming-out speech tonight," she said, "because I already did my coming out about a thousand years ago back in the Stone Age."

Foster said she had always been up front with trusted friends and family about her sexual orientation.

"But now apparently, I'm told that every celebrity is expected to honor the details of their private life with a press conference ... that's just not me," she said.

Foster, 50, then talked to her "ex-partner in love" Cydney Bernard, from whom she recently split, and their two sons in the audience.

"Thank you Cyd, I am so proud of our modern family, our amazing sons," Foster said.

Over the years, Foster had come under withering criticism from the gay community for not publicly recognizing she was gay.

The two-time best actress Oscar winner for "The Silence of the Lambs" and "The Accused" said she had valued her privacy because of her early acting career, which started at the age of three.

"If you had been a public figure from the time that you were a toddler, if you'd had to fight for a life that felt real and honest and normal against all odds, then maybe you, too, might value privacy above all else," she said.

(This story is corrected with spelling of Bernard's first name to Cydney in paras 6 and 7)

(Reporting by Piya Sinha-Roy and Mary Milliken; Editing by Jon Boyle)

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NEW YORK (AP) Robin Roberts' grueling road to recovery will be bringing her back to the "Good Morning America" anchor desk soon.

Appearing from her home on Monday's show, Roberts wore a broad smile as she announced that her most recent bone marrow test showed no sign of the life-threatening disease that has kept her off the air for months.

That means she can begin the process of returning to the anchor chair, she said, emphasizing she needs to go through a "process of re-entry."

She said she hopes to be back "in weeks, not months," perhaps as soon as February.

"I'm coming home," she declared during a festive appearance complete with "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" played as a musical accompaniment.

One of Roberts' physicians, Dr. Gail Roboz, said the test last week gave them the results "we were looking for: Right now, did we get rid of what we started out trying to get rid of?"

She described Roberts' recovery process as "no vacation this has been brutal."

The good news came 138 days after Roberts' September bone marrow transplant. The donor for the 52-year-old Roberts was her older sister, Sally-Ann.

"Her cells continue to make themselves at home in my body," Roberts said.

In June, she disclosed that she had MDS, a blood and bone marrow disease. Her last day on "GMA" was Aug. 30 before she began extended medical leave from the ABC morning show, which last summer overtook longtime ratings leader "Today."

"I haven't been live on television since the end of August," she reminded her colleagues Monday. "My heart is beating so fast right now. But that means I'm alive. I'm alive!"

Roberts hasn't exactly been absent from "GMA." Reports on her condition have been faithfully showcased on the show, maybe to excess in the minds of some observers.

Pressed for details by her co-anchor, George Stephanopoulos, Roberts likened her return to an athlete getting back on the field after an injury.

"They don't go right back into the starting lineup. They go to practice, they throw the ball, and see how their body reacts," she explained.

One preliminary step: "I got up at 4 a.m. this morning," she said proudly. "I've got to get back on 'GMA' time."

Next week, she will go through a dry run: arriving at the studio and getting into makeup as if she were about to do the show, but stopping short of actually going on camera. It will be a test to see how her body reacts to the stress of being back in the studio environment, she said, adding that she will even need to re-accustom her skin to the studio lights.

After the dry run, Roberts and her doctors will evaluate her status to further pinpoint a return date.

"We're going to take it step by step," she said.

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BERLIN (AP) German police say robbers dug a 30-meter (100-foot) tunnel into the safe deposit room of a Berlin bank and escaped with their haul, setting a fire as they left to cover their tracks.

Berlin police spokesman Thomas Neuendorf says the tunnel led from an underground garage into the bank's safe deposit room.

Neuendorf told The Associated Press Monday that the tunnel was "very professional" and must have taken weeks or even months to complete. It was elaborately constructed and even had ceiling supports.

Police were alerted to the break-in early Monday when a security guard noticed smoke coming from the deposit room.

Neuendorf says police are still trying to determine what valuables were stolen from the deposit boxes.

Details of the heist called to mind the spectacular robbery of another Berlin bank in 1995. During that robbery thieves entered the bank through the door, took a hostage and demanded a helicopter and ransom.

Police besieged and eventually stormed the safe room where the thieves had holed up only to find out they had escaped through a tunnel dug by accomplices. Several but not all of the thieves were later caught.

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WASHINGTON - President Obama is putting his chips on guns.

It wasn't an issue he campaigned on - actually, it was almost the opposite of that. It did more to grab him than he did to grab it.

But a month after the unfathomable tragedy at Sandy Hook, the president has positioned himself to take on a fight with long odds as his biggest domestic-policy initiative this side of the never-ending fiscal fights.

The valuable run-up to the inauguration - traditionally a White House's best chance to put forward a bold new policy initiative - is being dominated by the polarizing debate over gun control. The coming fight has broad implications on virtually every other Washington priority in 2013 and beyond.

Vice President Joe Biden's guns task force is strongly signaling recommending a robust menu of policy options, spanning executive actions and legislative initiatives. Each piece is sure to require the full force of presidential leadership to turn into action.

"The public demands we speak to it," Biden said last week, referencing the emotions that followed a tragedy involving young children.

It may yet be a solid bet that this moment is different than past shootings. Powerful allies including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords are lending their considerable political weight to the efforts, prodding action along.

Already, the fact that Washington hasn't lost interest bodes well for a major legislative push that includes more background checks and a renewed assault weapons ban.

But the gun lobby has been explicit that it won't be giving in. The fight will consume valuable political oxygen, perhaps all of what's available to a reelected president whose party controls only half of Capitol Hill.

That means other ambitious subject areas - immigration reform, energy and environmental policy, a major infrastructure initiative - will have to wait. Moreover, the coming brinksmanship over spending and budget issues could further poison the chances of action, potentially grinding Washington to an effective halt.

President George W. Bush found out the hard way that political capital doesn't last long into a second term, even if the president tries to spend it with a friendly Congress. Bush's push for Social Security reform not only went nowhere, it helped sow the seeds of the Democratic takeover of Congress in 2006.

This fight over guns has the potential to be more than that for Obama, though. After a campaign devoid of much inspiration, a passionate debate that gets to the heart of the nation's culture may be what the recently reelected president needs.

The fight will mobilize and energize those on both sides - even if it tires everyone out before discussions begin in other areas.

But if the president walks away with something substantial, at the very time that major progress on any front is so illusory in Washington, the moment won't have been wasted.

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NEW YORK (AP) Mr. "SexyBack" is back.

Justin Timberlake released his new single, "Suit and Tie," late Sunday night. It features rapper Jay-Z.

The upbeat jam is the 31-year-old's first musical offering since 2006's critically acclaimed "FutureSex/LoveSounds." His third solo album, "The 20/20 Experience," will be out later this year.

In a letter posted on his website, Timberlake said he began recording music in June. He wrote that the "inspiration for this really came out of the blue."

Timberlake co-wrote and co-produced "Suit and Tie" with Timbaland, who produced much of the Grammy-winning "FutureSex/LoveSounds."

The buzz around the pop star's return to music kicked off Friday when he posted a video on his website that showed him walking into a studio, putting on headphones and saying: "I'm ready."

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With all the pressure to strike the right style note at the Golden Globes the kickoff to Hollywood's award season Claire Danes had one more: a post-baby body.

"I am very strapped into this dress. It's Versace and they are masters of illusions," she said after her win Sunday for best actress in a TV drama. She wore a plunging red dress just a month after giving birth to her son.

Danes was one of many sirens in red on the red carpet, including Zooey Deschanel in Oscar de la Renta and Jennifer Lawrence and Marion Cotillard both in strapless coral gowns by Dior Haute Couture.

Also in Versace in a less-loved look was Halle Berry in a one-shoulder printed gown with a fuchsia-and-blush print. A floral ballgown by Carolina Herrera worn by Lucy Liu was another unconventional choice sure to become water-cooler fodder.

Among those wearing blush-colored gowns were Megan Fox another new mom in Dolce & Gabbana and Amy Adams in Marchesa. And there were lots of attention-getting sheer looks, including Jennifer Lopez's seemingly barely there gown by Zuhair Murad.

Other sure-to-be-noticed gowns were Jessica Chastain's seafoam green Calvin Klein, Julianne Moore in Tom Ford and Katharine McPhee in a plunging black V-neck by Olivier Theyskens for Theory. Anne Hathaway went for an unfussy beaded white look by Chanel while Sofia Vergara veered a little from her signature mermaid gown but kept her va-va-voom.

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AP Entertainment Writer Anthony McCartney contributed to this report.

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