AACHEN, Germany/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Central Bank still has room to maneuver should the euro zone economy continue to worsen after it cut interest rates to a new record low last week, ECB policymakers said on Wednesday.

The ECB cut its main rate to 0.5 percent last Thursday.

Yves Mersch, a member of the ECB's six-man Executive Board, said the bank still had tools at its disposal, but added that it could only spur lending to small euro zone companies in conjunction with other European institutions.

His colleague Joerg Asmussen said the ECB had an open mind about what it could do to revive lending to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) - a growing concern for the central bank, particularly in the crisis-stricken periphery countries.

"We still have tools in our toolbox, we are not a toothless tiger," Mersch said in a panel discussion in the northern German city of Aachen.

The ECB said last week it had set up a task force with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to assess ways to unblock lending to SMEs, for example by promoting a market for asset-backed securities (ABS) based on SME loans.

ABS would allow banks to pass some credit risk on to other investors, enabling them up to lend more.

The move to promote ABS is controversial, particularly in Germany, as during the financial crisis such securities became toxic due to the default of housing loans that underpinned them.

Asmussen said the ECB's work was ongoing.

"We have an open mind to look at all things that we can do within our mandate and this relates to how can the market for asset-backed securities, especially backed by SME loans, be revived in Europe," he told a European Parliament committee.

Asmussen was responding to a question about a Wednesday article in German newspaper Die Welt, which cited a central bank source as saying a majority of ECB Governing Council members seemed to be in favor of the central bank buying ABSs itself.

Mersch said he was more skeptical about direct asset purchases by the ECB to ease SME funding strains as these measures would be more difficult to exit than central bank lending operations.

"We will not subsidize markets, we will not overtake markets, that is not the task of monetary policy," Mersch said. "We will be sure not to overstep our mandate."

NO DEFLATION DANGER

Asmussen, a German and generally a more hawkish member of the 23-man Governing Council, said the central bank was studying what it could do but that other EU institutions may be better placed to spur lending to SMEs.

The ECB could help with the provision of liquidity, Asmussen said, adding: "I think we have done a lot here."

The ECB has cut interest rates to a record low, flooded the banking sector with more than 1 trillion euros ($1.3 trillion)in ultra-cheap three-year loans, loosened its collateral framework and launched an new yet-to-be-used government bond purchase program.

But the euro zone economy is still in recession. Unemployment hit a record high in March and inflation fell to 1.2 percent in April, far below the ECB's goal of below, but close to 2 percent.

Mersch said inflation expectations were stable, "as far as the eye can see".

"The risk of deflation is also not bigger than 10 to 15 percent, according to economic forecasts. It is not an immediate danger and we do not have to steer against it," Mersch said. (Reporting by Martin Santa; writing by Paul Carrel and Eva Kuehnen; editing by Stephen Nisbet, Ron Askew)

MIAMI (Reuters) - Miami Heat bounced back from their series-opening loss to Chicago to thrash the Bulls 115-78 on Wednesday and level their Eastern Conference semi-final at 1-1.

The 37-point margin was the heaviest defeat the Chicago Bulls had suffered in a playoff game and the biggest ever post-season margin of victory for the Heat.

The Bulls upset a rusty Miami in Game One on Monday but the defending NBA champions responded with an aggressive opening quarter that turned into a masterclass, then a massacre.

Monday's defeat had clearly provided the Heat with a wake-up call that resulted in a performance worthy of the defending champions.

"I think this was our first real adversity of the season, losing Game One at home was tough," said Miami's Dwyane Wade.

"We had to go back and look at ourselves in the mirror, look at each other in the eye and say 'listen, what reason are we here for?'.

"I think we did a good job of coming out early in the game and setting the tone," he added.

The margin of victory could have been even more emphatic given Miami led by 46 points with 8:16 remaining in the fourth quarter before resting their first choice players.

'POISE AND UNDERSTANDING'

Most Valuable Player LeBron James, who had been restricted to two first half points in Game One, was back to near his best, shooting six of six in the first quarter and ending up with 19 points for the game, a number which didn't reflect his influence on the outcome before he sat out the fourth quarter.

"People think he should dominate and score 40 every night," said Miami coach Erik Spoelstra.

"If the game calls for it, he will. If it means he is going to make the right play by setting someone else up, or letting another guy make the play, he will. That's his poise and understanding," he said.

Ray Allen top scored for Miami with 21 points including ten of ten from the free throw line as the Heat bench scored a franchise record 55 points.

In a physical game, with a total of nine technical fouls, the Bulls had Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson ejected in the fourth quarter - any league ruling on fines or suspensions is expected on Thursday.

Noah, who faced some strong provocation from some in the Miami crowd, conceded the Bulls lost their composure as the game ran away from them.

"We had a lot of technical fouls. Yeah, I would call that not keeping our cool, not being very zen," he said.

"We didn't play well but it's not the end of the world. It's one to one and it is going to be a big game three in Chicago."

Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau was clearly upset with the officials but said his team would have to handle the pressure better when they return to their own court.

"We got sidetracked and you can't do that. We showed a lot of frustration ... you have to have poise under pressure.

"You come in here, you're not going to get calls, that is the way it is, that's reality, you can't get wrapped up in that stuff. You have to stay focused.

"You can't allow people to get you back on your heels. That has to be corrected."

(Editing by Ian Ransom)

The Finger Lakes is in good company, and other lakeside destinations featured in the article include: Lac Leman in France/Lake Geneva in Switzerland, Lake Geneva in Wisconsin, Lake George in New York, Lake Como in Italy, Lake Louise in Canada, Lakes of Killarney in Ireland, Lake Tahoe, Lake of the Woods in Minnesota, Manitoba in Canada, and Lake Titicaca in Peru and Bolivia.

“Visitors are drawn to the Finger Lakes and it is important the national media continues to recognize it,” said AJ Shear, Communications Manager for , Ontario County’s tourism office. “In 2011, travelers to the region spent $2.7 billion and national media coverage such as this certainly plays a role. As the nation pays more attention to the Finger Lakes, that number will surely grow.”

Social media wins such as this Yahoo! blog and others continue to play a role in raising awareness of the Finger Lakes. A 2012 study conducted by Finger Lakes Visitors Connection and Young Strategies, Inc. found that half of the respondents in a visitor survey indicated using a smart-phone device while traveling and one-third use a tablet while traveling or for pre-trip planning.

“People are using digital resources to plan their trips to the Finger Lakes and while using their iPads and smartphones, they are likely to seek out these blogs and other social media platforms to influence their travel decisions,” said Shear.

Finger Lakes Visitors Connection recently hosted four New York City-based lifestyle bloggers which resulted in additional national social media wins including 1 million Twitter impressions. Golf getaway packages from Ontario County have also recently been featured in blogs for web sites such as Travel + Leisure and PeterGreenberg.com.

###

Finger Lakes Visitors Connection is the official tourism promotion agency for Ontario County and is located at 25 Gorham Street in Canandaigua. For more information, please visitor call the Finger Lakes Visitors Connection at 585-394-3915.

AJ ShearFinger Lakes Visitors Connection585-394-3915

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada tapped an outsider on Thursday to head its central bank, bringing in the well-respected head of the Canadian export credit agency, who immediately stressed the need to nurture a choppy economic recovery.

Incoming Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz, 57, worked at the central bank for 14 years earlier in his career. But he has spent the last 14 years at Export Development Canada.

Poloz takes over as central bank chief on June 3 when Mark Carney leaves, a surprise for markets, which had tipped Carney's senior deputy Tiff Macklem as the most likely choice. Carney becomes governor of the Bank of England on July 1.

In his debut with reporters, Poloz was careful not to contradict the views that Carney and the central bank expressed in their quarterly economic report last month.

"We are in a recovery that is not as vigorous as would normally be expected and ... I think it will be necessary to nourish it, I don't know for how long," Poloz said in an introductory news briefing in Ottawa.

Canada's economy recovered well from the 2008-09 recession thanks to aggressive government spending, tax cuts and record-low interest rates. But growth stalled last year, with the economy recording its slowest two quarters of growth since the crisis.

The Bank of Canada has kept its key rate on hold at what it describes as a stimulative 1 percent since 2010. But it has signaled for the past year that the next move will be a rate hike, not a cut.

Poloz said exports now needed to fuel the Canadian economy, and he believed this was already starting to happen. Canada unexpectedly recorded a trade surplus in March, the first monthly surplus after a year of deficits.

"In my judgment, it's looking promising. I hope you agree with that," he said, turning to Carney, who smiled broadly: "Yes, absolutely," Carney replied.

Analysts do not expect Poloz to rethink central bank policies, especially because of his experience working there earlier in his career. The bank, which guards its independence jealously, targets inflation of 2 percent, but has said it will be flexible with the timeline for reaching that target in difficult economic times.

"The move was a surprise, but I don't look for any change in monetary policy," said Craig Wright, chief economist at Royal Bank of Canada.

Unlike the U.S. Federal Reserve or the Bank of England, there are no discernible "hawks" or "doves" among the Bank of Canada's six governing council members because the council reaches decisions by consensus and takes pains to speak from a common script at public appearances.

Poloz will serve a seven-year term.

In a Reuters poll on April 10, Poloz was seen as the second most likely candidate to get the job after Macklem.

Poloz appeared upbeat about signs of gradual cooling of the once-hot Canadian housing market and a slowing in record-high household debt levels in Canada - both top concerns of Finance Minister Jim Flaherty.

"Of course it's a concern in the sense of where we are," Poloz said. "However, the evolution appears to be constructive, and I think that's great, for us to continue to watch that and to, if you like, nurture that process of a return to more normal conditions."

Economists have said Poloz has the credentials to succeed as governor and that he was viewed as a governor-in-waiting in his previous period at the central bank.

FOLKSY COMMUNICATOR

He is a good communicator, described by one person as "folksy" in his speeches but also whip-smart. He worked at a private-sector financial research firm in Montreal for five years after leaving the central bank.

Poloz joined EDC, a quasi-independent organization that provides loans to importers of Canadian goods, in 1999 as its chief economist and became president of the agency in 2010.

One possible strike against him was the perception among some market players that he may be more sympathetic than his predecessors to exporters' complaints about the strong Canadian dollar and lean towards a weaker currency.

RBC assistant chief economist Paul Ferley dismissed that notion.

"This would do a disservice to Poloz's early career at the central bank where the priority is to set monetary policy to achieve an appropriate rate of inflation," he said.

Poloz will have only about a month to transition to his new role, much shorter than the four months Carney had between his appointment in October 2007 and his first day of work in February 2008.

This is the third time in a row that the top job at the Bank of Canada has gone to an outside candidate rather than to the most senior internal policymaker, in this case Macklem.

Macklem said in a statement that he would stay with the bank and looked forward to working with Poloz.

(Reporting by David Ljunggren and Louise Egan; Editing by Janet Guttsman, Peter Galloway and Paul Simao)

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index recorded its second-biggest percentage jump of the year so far on Tuesday, boosted by gains in almost all main sectors and in Suncor Energy Incshares after a strong earnings showing.

The climb helped the index, which has advanced in eight of the last nine sessions, recover from a massive commodities-led selloff earlier this month and turn positive on the year.

An 18 percent jump in CGI Group Incafter the information technology services company reported strong fiscal second-quarter results further lifted sentiment.

Investors also closely eyed potential actions by central banks as weak European economic data heightened expectations of an interest rate cut by the European Central Bank. U.S. Federal Reserve members gathered for a two-day meeting at which they are expected to agree to sustain the bond-buying program.

Despite the recent gains, the Toronto market is flat this year so far, compared with a nearly 12 percent rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index .

"The TSX is in a good position to narrow the performance gap," said Elvis Picardo, strategist and vice president of research at Global Securities in Vancouver.

"We've been lagging this whole bull run," he added. "You just have to wonder if investors have been too downbeat on Canada's prospects over the past few months."

Canada's economy delivered a welcome surprise in February, growing faster than expected and prompting economists to upgrade their forecasts for the first quarter, although none expect the central bank to raise interest rates any time soon.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite indexclosed up 143.83 points, or 1.17 percent, at 12,456.50.

Nine of the 10 main sectors of the index were higher.

Suncor rose 6 percent as Canada's largest energy company increased its dividend 54 percent, said it would buy back C$2 billion ($1.97 billion) of its own shares and reported first-quarter earnings that surpassed expectations. Suncor had the biggest positive influence on the index.

"It's a pleasant surprise," Irwin Michael, portfolio manager at ABC Funds, said of Suncor's results.

"You need more of the big companies doing a little better than expected," he added. "We expect to see more dividend increases and better earnings as well."

Suncor's gains offset declines in other major oil and gas producers, which fell with oil prices.

The index's materials sector, which includes mining stocks, rose 1.4 percent. In the group, miner Goldcorp Incadvanced 2.2 percent to C$29.82.

Financials, the index's most heavily weighted sector, added 0.9 percent.

($1=$1.01 Canadian)

(Editing by Bob Burgdorfer)

Each driver and car owner was docked 25 championship points, dropping Keselowski from second to fourth in the Cup standings and Logano from ninth 14th.

Along with the $100,000 fine they each got, Keselowski crew chief Paul Wolfe and Logano crew chief Todd Gordon were suspended for the next six championship points races and placed on probation for the rest of the calendar year. Also suspended and put on probation were Travis Geisler, who serves as team manager for both cars, and the individual car chiefs and team engineers for the two cars.

NASCAR also announced penalties for Martin Truex Jr. and Ron Hornaday Jr., but neither was as steep as those against the Penske cars.

Penske Racing vowed to appeal, a move that would put any suspensions on hold.

"Penske Racing will appeal utilizing the appropriate NASCAR process," the team said. "We have no further comment at this time."

NASCAR inspectors confiscated the original rear-end housing with suspension parts from Keselowski's No. 2 Ford and Logano's No. 22 before Saturday night's race, causing a pre-race scramble for both teams. Logano was late to the starting grid because of additional inspections and had to start at the back of the field. He recovered to finish fifth and Keselowski was ninth.

Keselowski was livid following the race.

"The things I've seen over the last seven days have me questioning everything that I believe in, and I'm not happy about it," Keselowski said. "I have one good thing to say, and that was my team and the effort they put in today, in fighting back with the absolute (expletive) that's been the last seven days in this garage area."

NASCAR said both Penske cars used parts that had not been approved before getting to Texas. This is the first year of the series' new cars that underwent nearly two years of testing before their debuts.

With the team manager and the engineers of both cars also being suspended, the penalties against the Penske teams went further than last season, when Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 car failed the opening day inspection at the Daytona 500. Five-time championship winning crew chief Chad Knaus and the car chief for that Hendrick Motorsports car were suspended for six races.

Knaus still had to pay a $100,000 fine, but the bulk of the penalties levied against him and the car chief were later overturned by NASCAR's chief appellate officer, the highest level of appeal. Johnson also got back 25 points that had been docked.

Logano said Wednesday on NASCAR Race Hub that the fines and penalties won't be a distraction for Penske Racing.

"We can definitely move ahead. We are ready for that and obviously we have talked a lot about it," said Logano, whose appearance on the Speed Channel show was previously scheduled. "Penske Racing has a lot of depth inside the company, and we can make adjustments to make sure we still run well.

"I think it goes to show we made some adjustments before the race started and we still were able to come home with a top-five finish," he said, also noting Keselowski's top-10 finish. "Proud of that effort in Texas, and especially after all of the adversity there. I think it says a lot about our company."

Keselowski, who has six top-10 finishes, got a penalty a week earlier at Martinsville for pitting outside his stall. He still disputes that.

"There's so much stuff going on. You guys have no idea ... what's going on," Keselowski said Saturday night. "I could tell you there is nobody, no team in this garage with the integrity of the 2 team. And the way we've been treated over the last seven days is absolutely shameful."

NASCAR didn't punish Keselowski for his post-race rant.

Keselowski spent Tuesday at the White House, where President Barack Obama honored him and his crew for winning the Sprint Cup championship.

Truex, who finished second at Texas behind Kyle Busch, was punished for having a front end that was too low. He and owner Michael Waltrip were each docked six points and crew chief Chad Johnston was fined $25,000 and placed on probation until June 5. The points deduction dropped Truex from 16th to 19th heading into this weekend's race at Kansas.

NASCAR fined Hornaday $25,000 and docked him 25 points for spinning Darrell Wallace Jr. under caution in Sunday's Truck Series race at Rockingham.Hornaday's team, NTS Motorsports, said it wouldn't appeal the penalties.

___

AP Auto Racing Writer Jenna Fryer contributed to this report.

"Our uncertainty on future water levels which is considerable is a direct reflection of our uncertainty on future climates," Drew Gronewold, a hydrologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in Ann Arbor, Mich., said in a news briefing today (April 23).

In January, average water levels in Lake Michigan andfell to 576.02 feet (175.57 meters), the lowest levels since 1964. Gronewold says these drops were largely due to warmer and dryer conditions the previous year, which produced less snowpack in the region.

Scientists monitor changes in the so-calledwater budget to make short- and long-term forecasts of water levels. This budget takes into account the water that comes into the Great Lakes basin through precipitation, ice cover and runoff, and the water that leaves through evaporation.

"The interplay between relative increases in precipitation and relative increases in evaporation are what will drive water levels," Gronewold said.

But, these calculations can be tricky because they incorporate so many different variables, including the , he added. Changes in solar energy, for example, which would increase or decrease evaporation, can affect how much rainfall eventually runs off into the lakes, or gets sent back into the atmosphere.

And whereas NOAA closely monitors the interplay between precipitation and evaporation for all the Great Lakes, Gronewold said it is difficult to know how these changes will play out over the next several decades.

In the meantime, the spring season may bring some short-term relief to the area. It is not unusual for springtime runoff, coupled with , to contribute 5 inches (12.7 centimeters) to the lakes, Gronewold explained.

"This is a time of year when water levels typically rise naturally," Gronewold said.

Follow Denise Chow . Follow LiveScience , & . Original article on.

Here's how it will work and what you need to know.

1. THINK BCS

The conference commissioners who spent more than a year putting the playoff together cringe when it's suggested that the new system is BCS 2.0, but to understand how it works, it helps to keep in mind how the Bowl Championship Series worked.

In the BCS, there were four, and then later five games played each season. Only one, the national championship game, had anything to do with the national championship. The others were glitzy bowl games played in showcase stadiums that hopefully had compelling matchups. Six conferences had automatic bids to those games, and other teams could earn automatic entry.

The new system will have a total of seven games, including two national semifinals and a final that will determine the national champion. The four other games will be glitzy bowl games played in showcase stadiums that hopefully will have compelling matchups. There will no longer be automatic bids for six conference champions, as was the case for the BCS. Now five conferences (the Big Ten, Big 12, SEC, ACC and Pac-12) each have guaranteed a spot for their conference champion in either the semifinals or one of the four glitzy bowls. There will also be a guaranteed spot for the best team from the five FBS conferences (the Big East, soon to be the American Athletic Conference, Mountain West, Sun Belt, Conference-USA and Mid-American).

2. THE MATCHUPS

The selection committee will, for the most part, make the matchups. Foremost it will seed the top four teams in the country, setting up the semifinals. No. 1 will play No. 4. No. 2 will play No. 3. The committee will try as best it can to avoid giving the lower-seeded team a geographical advantage. For example, if LSU is seeded fourth the committee is unlikely to let the Tigers play a semifinal in New Orleans.

The selection committee will also set some of the matchups in the glitzy bowls, with a priority on getting as many highly ranked teams as possible into the games.

But this is important: when the Rose Bowl does not host a semifinal it will always be Big Ten vs. Pac-12. The Sugar Bowl in years it does not host a semifinal will always be Southeastern Conference vs. Big 12. The Orange Bowl in the years it does not host a semifinal will always be Atlantic Coast Conference vs. either an SEC team, a Big Ten team or Notre Dame.

3. CONFERENCE LIMITATIONS

None. Unlike the BCS, which capped the number of teams from a conference at two, in the new system there is no limit to how many teams a league can put in the two semifinals or the other bowls. Four SEC teams? Sure, why stop there.

4. WHERE?

The semifinals will rotate through six bowl games: the Rose (Pasadena), Orange (Miami), Sugar (New Orleans), Fiesta (Glendale, Ariz.), Cotton (Arlington, Texas) and Chick-fil-A (Atlanta). When those games don't host a semifinal, they will put on one of the glitzy bowls.

The championship game will be bid out like the Super Bowl and move all over the country. The first one will be played at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, also home of the Cotton Bowl.

5. WHEN?

Three games will be played back-to-back-to-back on New Year's Eve and there will be another tripleheader on New Year's Day. Adjustments will be made if Dec. 31 or Jan. 1 falls on a Sunday so as to not conflict with the NFL.

The championship game will always be played on a Monday, at least a week after the semifinals.

The first season the semifinals will be in the Rose and Sugar bowls on Jan. 1, 2015. The Rose will kickoff around 5 p.m. EST. The Sugar around 8:30 p.m. EDT.

The championship game in Texas will be played Jan. 12, and kickoff around 8:30 p.m.

The Rose and Sugar bowls will always be played on New Year's Day, so in most seasons the semifinals will be played on New Year's Eve.

6. TV

All these games will be shown on ESPN. It has reportedly paid about $7.2 billion for the entire package.

7. WHERE ALL THAT MONEY GOES

About 85 percent of it will go to the Big Five conferences. The other five will split the rest, but don't feel too badly for them. Most will be making about five times the amount they made with the BCS.

8. AND ABOUT THAT SELECTION COMMITTEE

The idea was to make it similar to the one that puts together the NCAA basketball tournament, made up of athletic directors and conference commissioners. But make no mistake, this will be much tougher to put together, and the commissioners know that.

"This is an issue of considerable complexity and given how much time we have until the playoff begins, we're in no rush," BCS executive director Bill Hancock said Thursday, the final of three days of meetings at a resort hotel in the Rose Bowl's backyard.

Everything is apparently still up for debate, from who will be on the committee current or former athletic administrators? to how many people will be on it 16? 18? 20? to what kind of metrics and rankings it will be given to guide decisions.

9. HOW LONG BEFORE THIS SYSTEM CAN BE CHANGED?

The conferences and ESPN worked out a 12-year deal based on a four-team playoff format. So it appears to be locked in for 12 years, even though the structure is there for it to grow.

10. WHY COLLEGE FOOTBALL WON'T GROW THE SYSTEM TO EIGHT OR 16 TEAMS

"Because we don't want to," Hancock said.

Of course, a few years ago some of the same people working on this didn't want a playoff system at all.