Reuters - Shares of Citigroup fell 8 percent to $20.69 in pre-market trade after a merger deal was announced between Wachovia Corp and Wells Fargo & Co .

Reuters - The sluggish service sector was barely growing in September as the country's worst financial crisis since the Great Depression reached new heights, according to a report released on Friday.

Reuters - U.S. employers cut 159,000 jobs last month, a ninth straight monthly reduction and the deepest in 5-1/2 years, the government said in a report on Friday that suggested the economy may be in recession.

Reuters - Stocks fell, shedding earlier gains on Friday, as concerns about the economy overshadowed the U.S. House of Representatives' approval of the Bush administration's $700 billion financial rescue package.

Reuters - The House of Representatives approved a $700 billion bailout package for U.S. banks, under pressure from all sides as the effort to head off a spreading financial crisis hung in the balance.

Reuters - Wells Fargo & Co said on Friday it would buy Wachovia Corp for about $16 billion, apparently besting a government-backed Citigroup Inc bid for some of the bank's assets, in a deal that would catapult Wells Fargo into the ranks of the leading national consumer banks.

AP - Alarmed by the financial meltdown, stores nationwide are slapping sale signs on everything from fall sweaters to furniture — frantically trying to attract shoppers who are cutting back.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve should not cut interest rates again, even though the economy may face recession, a top Fed policy-maker said on Thursday.

Reuters - Oil fell nearly a dollar to near $93 a barrel on Friday, its third consecutive day of losses, on skepticism that a U.S. bailout package would be enough to prevent further oil demand falls.

Reuters - Stocks slid on Thursday as tight credit markets and bleak economic data forced investors to focus on the rocky road still ahead for the U.S. economy even if Congress passes a $700 billion rescue package this week.

Reuters - John Thain, the Merrill Lynch & Co Inc chief executive who engineered the firm's sale to Bank of America Corp, will head investment banking, securities and wealth management at the new company -- at least for now.

Reuters - Europe's top banker pressed the U.S. Congress to approve a $700 billion bailout of the U.S. financial industry on Friday and urged European states to unite in tackling a crisis now shaking the world economy.

Reuters - The cost of protecting insurers' debt with credit default swaps rose on Thursday as concerns mounted about potential investment losses.

Reuters - Oil dropped 4 percent on Thursday as financial market turmoil stoked concerns about fuel demand and sent investors seeking safer havens.