NEW YORK (Reuters) - MBIA Inc (MBI.N), the world's largest bond insurer, posted a quarterly loss of $2.4 billion on Monday as it took charges on billions of dollars of exposure to bonds linked to subprime mortgages.

NEW YORK -- MBIA Inc. swung to a $2.41 billion loss during the first quarter as the bond insurer faced ongoing deterioration in the credit markets and recorded billions in write-downs.

Wall Street reacts to hopeful signs about giant bond insurer MBIA and the sale of existing homes. Stocks rallied Monday on hopes that troubled bond insurers will emerge from the sub-prime mortgage debacle on solid footing. The Dow Jones industrials rallied nearly 190 points.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - MBIA Inc (MBI.N), the world's largest bond insurer, held onto its top credit ratings from Standard & Poor's on Monday, a development that soothed stock and bond investors who feared downgrades would roil capital markets.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - MBIA Inc (MBI.N), struggling to preserve the top-level credit ratings it needs to operate normally, said on Thursday its industry should insure municipal bonds as a separate business from insuring riskier corporate and asset-backed debt.

The world's largest bond insurer, MBIA, announced yesterday that it has brought back former chief executive Joseph W. Brown to run the company and will consider splitting in two after losses on subprime debt prompted a deep slump in the share price and put its AAA credit ratings in jeopardy.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - MBIA Inc (MBI.N) ousted Chief Executive Gary Dunton and replaced him with former CEO Joseph "Jay" Brown as the bond insurer scrambles to overcome mortgage-related losses, maintain a top credit rating and restore market confidence.

NEW YORK -- MBIA Inc. reported write-downs of $3.5 billion on souring credit markets Thursday, exacerbating concerns that rising costs could squeeze local governments as well as slow any recovery for big banks.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - MBIA Inc, a bond insurer struggling to keep the top credit ratings necessary to win new business, posted a record quarterly loss after writing down $3.5 billion and said it was looking at ways to raise equity to shore up capital.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors may snap up a planned $1 billion debt sale by a unit of MBIA Inc , after the beleaguered bond insurer was forced to ramp up the deal's yield to about 14 percent to attract greater interest, according to investors familiar with the deal on Friday.