Reuters - U.S. technology shares rose on Friday as strong results from computer maker Dell Inc signaled that business and consumer spending was holding up, driving the Nasdaq to end the month up 4.6 percent.

AFP - German retail sales released Friday posted a surprise monthly fall in April, adding to evidence that rising prices are keeping consumers away from the shops.

AP - The first round of economic stimulus checks gave a boost to personal incomes in April but a huge question remains: Will people spend the checks quickly enough to keep the economy afloat?

Reuters - U.S. consumer confidence fell to a 28-year low in May, a survey showed on Friday, as soaring prices for food and fuel soured sentiment and pushed long-term inflation expectations to the highest in more than a decade.

Reuters - Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Friday that he does not expect another "bubble" in world markets for a long time, and that central banks at any rate do not control the long-term interest rates that can be related to bubbles.

Reuters - Billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian on Friday said he would move ahead with a tender offer for Ford Motor Co shares, signaling a bigger bet on the automaker's turnaround despite the recent slump in its stock and lowered financial outlook.

Reuters - UAL Corp's United Airlines and US Airways Group said on Friday they would not merge, a decision that experts said effectively kills the chances of further U.S. airline consolidation this year.

AP - Japan's economy showed new signs of deterioration Friday, with the country's unemployment rate rising and consumers tightening their purse strings amid soaring food and oil prices, the government said.

Reuters - Defaults on privately insured mortgages rose sharply in April, showing homeowners continue to struggle to keep up with loan payments.

Reuters - Dell Inc , the world's No. 2 personal computer maker, said on Friday sales outside the United States were growing much faster than its home market and could account for two-thirds of total revenues within five years.

Reuters - United Airlines and US Airways have suspended merger talks due to concerns about labor opposition and integration costs, while United draws closer to an alliance with Continental Airlines, a source close to the talks said late on Thursday.

Reuters - A U.S. regulatory probe into potential oil-market trading abuses is focusing on possible short-term manipulation of benchmark crude prices and the use of information related to important oil storage tanks to influence prices, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Reuters - Ford Motor Co is preparing to fire U.S. salaried employees over the next two months due to the sudden downturn in auto sales, a drastic step it has so far avoided during its 2-1/2-year restructuring.