NEW YORK (Reuters) – The biggest risk to a rally in the U.S. stock market is that economic growth could be weaker and energy and other raw material prices even higher than now expected, Goldman Sachs’ chief U.S. equity strategist said on Monday.

At the Reuters 2011 Investment Outlook Summit in New York, Goldman’s David Kostin said the firm continues to see the Standard and Poors 500 index .SPX ending 2011 at 1,450 points. He cut his forecast from 1,500 on May 27.

The benchmark stock index fell to 1,291 points on Monday, its lowest since March 23.

Asked about the biggest question mark for stocks, Kostin cited “a more significant slowdown in the U.S. economy or higher raw material prices than we are currently forecasting.”

The firm’s S&P forecast currently assumes U.S. GDP growth for 2011 at a relatively sluggish 2.6 percent, rising to 3.2 percent in 2012, and Brent crude oil prices ending the year at $120 per barrel, rising to $140 by the end of 2012.

Against that backdrop, Goldman currently favors large-capitalization stocks over small-cap, although the strategy has not paid off so far.

Kostin said consumer staple stocks could outperform for now, and that many such firms are having success passing higher materials costs onto their users.

MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (Reuters) – Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney broke with Republican orthodoxy on Friday by saying he believes that humans are responsible, at least to some extent, for climate change.

“I believe the world is getting warmer, and I believe that humans have contributed to that,” he told a crowd of about 200 at a town hall meeting in Manchester, New Hampshire.

“It’s important for us to reduce our emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases that may be significant contributors.”

The former Massachusetts governor fielded questions on topics ranging from the debt ceiling to abortion on his first official day of campaigning for 2012 Republican primary nomination.

Romney leads opinion polls in New Hampshire by a wide margin, and is among the top contenders nationally to win the Republican contest to challenge Democratic President Barack Obama.

But the candidate lost the publicity battle on Thursday when his campaign launch in New Hampshire was overshadowed by Republican star Sarah Palin, who swooped in as part of her East Coast bus tour to dominate local media coverage.

In addressing climate change and energy policy, Romney veered from the party’s usual skepticism on global warming, when he called on the United States to break its dependence on foreign oil, and expand alternative energies including solar, wind, nuclear and clean coal.

MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (Reuters) – Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney broke with Republican orthodoxy on Friday by saying he believes that humans are responsible, at least to some extent, for climate change.

“I believe the world is getting warmer, and I believe that humans have contributed to that,” he told a crowd of about 200 at a town hall meeting in Manchester, New Hampshire.

“It’s important for us to reduce our emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases that may be significant contributors.”

The former Massachusetts governor fielded questions on topics ranging from the debt ceiling to abortion on his first full day of campaigning for 2012 Republican primary nomination.

Romney leads opinion polls in New Hampshire by a wide margin, and is among the top contenders nationally to win the Republican primary.

But the candidate lost the publicity battle on Thursday when his campaign launch in New Hampshire was overshadowed by Republican star Sarah Palin, who swooped in as part of her East Coast bus tour to dominate local media coverage.

In addressing climate change and energy policy, Romney called on the United States to break its dependence on foreign oil, and expand alternative energies including solar, wind, nuclear and clean coal.

SEABROOK, New Hampshire (Reuters) – Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin swept into New Hampshire on Thursday sounding like a candidate, but stayed mum on her plans for the 2012 presidential election and beyond.

The 2008 vice presidential candidate and conservative star took her “One Nation” bus north from Boston to the seaside town of Seabrook, New Hampshire.

It was the first visit to the key early primary state since Palin’s failed run for the White House with John McCain.

“I want people to focus on my record,” Palin told reporters outside the small blue house where a few dozen invited guests had gathered for a New England-style clambake.

She then ticked off a list of jobs she has held, from the early days in Wasilla, Alaska, adding, “It’s not just about those six weeks on the vice presidential trail.”

Palin left her options open about jumping into the presidential race. She said she hopes to make an impact with her message but “not necessarily as a candidate.”

The bus tour, which has sparked a media frenzy since kicking off in Washington on Sunday, might take a brief hiatus after New Hampshire. But Palin suggested she and her family would soon “see other sites and go west.”

, New Hampshire (Reuters) – Mitt Romney, the multimillionaire former governor of Massachusetts, kicked off his second bid for the White House on Thursday with a hard-hitting economic message charging that “Barack Obama has failed America.”

“I’m Mitt Romney. I believe in America. And I’m running for president,” Romney said to cheers during an 18-minute speech in Stratham, New Hampshire.

The Republican front-runner so far, Romney started his campaign in this early-voting state where a win in February’s primary election is crucial to his chance of winning the party nomination to face President Barack Obama in the November 2012 election.

Romney blamed Obama for the job losses and home foreclosures that have plagued Americans during the Democratic president’s first term, saying that Obama inherited an economy in recession but made conditions worse with his policies.

With unemployment high and the housing market still soft, the economy is Obama’s main weakness, although polls say the president is still favoured over all potential Republican opponents.

Americans are also concerned about federal spending, the mounting national debt and a budget deficit projected to reach $1.4 trillion this year.

“Government under President Obama has grown to consume almost 40 percent of our economy. We are only inches away from ceasing to be a free-market economy,” said Romney.

BOSTON, June 2 (Reuters) – Mitt Romney, the multi-millionaire former governor of Massachusetts, will kick off his second bid for the White House on Thursday with a hard-hitting economic message charging that “Barack Obama has failed America.”

The apparent front-runner in a wide open Republican field, Romney will start his campaign in New Hampshire, the early-voting state where a win in next February’s primary election would boost his chance of winning the party nomination to face Democratic incumbent President Barack Obama in the November 2012 general election. [ID:nN01211167]

Romney will blame “the Obama economy” for the job losses and home foreclosures that have plagued Americans during the president’s first term and helped renew fears that the economy could soon dip back into recession.

The economy is perhaps Obama’s main weakness, although polls say the president is still favored over all potential Republican opponents.

Polls show Americans are also concerned about federal spending, the mounting national debt and a budget deficit projected to reach $1.4 trillion this year.

“Government under President Obama has grown to consume almost 40 percent of our economy. We are only inches away from ceasing to be a free-market economy,” Romney will say in his speech, according to excerpts released by his campaign.

By contrast, Romney says he would balance the federal budget and cap federal spending at 20 percent of gross domestic product, or less, if elected president.

BOSTON, June 2 (Reuters) – Mitt Romney, the multi-millionaire former governor of Massachusetts, kicks off his second bid for the White House on Thursday as the front-runner of a wide-open Republican field.

Romney will start his campaign in New Hampshire, the early-voting state where a win in the February primary election would boost his chance of taking the nomination and facing President Barack Obama in the November 2012 general election. [ID:nN01211167]

Romney has a powerful fund-raising apparatus in place. He raised an astounding $10.25 million in an eight-hour phone-a-thon in Las Vegas last month. Contacts from Romney’s days running the venture capital firm Bain Capital are another rich source of campaign donations.

“In a relatively open field, Mitt Romney at this juncture is the front-runner from an organizational and fund-raising standpoint,” said Republican strategist Ford O’Connell.

Most opinion polls show other Republican hopefuls like former House speaker Newt Gingrich and former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty trailing Romney by a wide margin, although surveys are volatile this early in the race.

Romney’s biggest stumbling block could be his support as governor of a healthcare program in Massachusetts that became a model for Obama’s national healthcare overhaul. Many Republicans dislike what they derisively call “Obamacare.”

Romney, 64, hopes to focus on economic issues, where he says his business background helps him as the United States struggles with high unemployment and weak growth.

BOSTON (Reuters) – The Boston Bruins lauded Tim Thomas on Friday after the veteran goaltender completed his second shutout of the series against Tampa Bay to help Boston advance to the Stanley Cup finals for the first time since 1990.

The Bruins beat the Lightning 1-0 on Nathan Horton’s goal with less than eight minutes remaining to edge the Eastern Conference finals by a 4-3 margin.

Thomas, a 37-year-old U.S. Olympian nicknamed “The Tank,” also shut out Tampa Bay in Game Three of the series on May 19.

“He’s not getting any younger, right? But one think I can say is he’s getting better,” Boston head coach Claude Julien said of his goalkeeper.

Thomas said the win felt like an incredible team effort. “We’ve just got such great character on this team. We got it done.”

Thomas’ team mates continued to heap praise on their goalie.

“He is definitely going to win a Vezina this year,” said Bruins forward Milan Lucic, referring to NHL’s trophy for the season’s best goaltender. “Hats off to Timmy, playing as well as he has.”

BOSTON (Reuters) – The Tampa Bay Lightning finished a rebuilding season just one game short of a spot in the Stanley Cup finals, leaving first-year head coach Guy Boucher with a bitter-sweet feeling.

“We have to be proud of our players. We put everything on the ice. It gives you hope for the future,” Boucher, the former coach of minor league Hamilton Bulldogs, told reporters.

Boucher admitted the wanted to win for Wayne Fleming, its assistant coach, who underwent surgery for a malignant brain tumor on May 3.

“Every win that we got put a smile on his face, and that was really important to us,” he said. “It’s too bad that we couldn’t put a smile on his face tonight.”

The Lightning faced relentless pressure from Boston and were outshot 38 to 24.

The Bruins’ only goal, Nathan Horton’s deft deflection of a David Krejci pass, came with less than eight minutes to play in the third period.

After Tampa’s 6-5 victory in a free-wheeling game six on Wednesday, Friday’s decider was a total contrast.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Rudy Giuliani came out on top of a new survey of the 2012 Republican presidential primary field, even though the former New York Mayor has not so far jumped into the race.

Many Republican voters quizzed in the CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll released on Friday said they were not very satisfied with the current crop of candidates who will battle for the right to take on President Barack Obama in the November 2012 election.

Giuliani, with 16 percent support, narrowly edged former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, currently seen as the party’s front-runner because of name recognition and a large campaign warchest, with 15 percent.

Also polling high were former Alaska governor Sarah Palin with 13 percent, Texas Congressman Ron Paul, with 12 percent, and pizza magnate Herman Cain at 10 percent. Palin also is not a declared candidate for 2012 so far.

All other announced and potential candidates scored less than 10 percent support in a poll of 473 likely Republican voters conducted May 24-26. The margin of sampling error was plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Early this month Giuliani said he had not yet decided on whether to go ahead with a second White House bid.

But Giuliani has made a string of appearances recently, and will speak in the key early voting state of New Hampshire next week at a fundraiser for the state Republican party.