Reuters - Signs of a sharp slowdown in Europe and a barrage of profit warnings and job cut announcements from companies around the world intensified fears of deep global recession on Friday.

Reuters - Sales of previously owned U.S. homes rose 5.5 percent last month, the biggest gain since July 2003, and the inventory of unsold homes fell, a hopeful sign for a housing market mired in a long slump.

Reuters - Stocks tumbled on Friday in a worldwide selloff with investors cashing out of stocks as signs mounted that the global economic slowdown could be deeper than feared and the corporate profit outlook darkened.

Reuters - Banks stocks fell worldwide on Thursday as concerns swelled that soaring loan losses, tight credit and deteriorating economies would overwhelm lenders' efforts to cut costs and preserve capital.

Reuters - The chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said on Thursday he "strongly" supported a merger between his agency and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Reuters - Troubled insurer American International Group Inc had borrowed $90.3 billion from the U.S. government as of Wednesday, three-quarters of the emergency funds made available to it under a federal rescue plan, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Reuters - A Bear Stearns mortgage portfolio backed by the U.S. government racked up $2.7 billion of losses in the third quarter, amounting to a 9 percent decline on about $30 billion of assets, the Federal Reserve said Thursday.

Reuters - Microsoft Corp reported better than expected quarterly profit and reduced its outlook less than many investors had feared in the face of tough economic conditions.

Reuters - Global stocks tumbled to a new five-year low on Friday and demand for the relative safety of government bonds and low-yielding currencies soared as economic decline and corporate damage continued to grip investors.

AP - European stock markets were lower Thursday following hefty losses in Asia earlier and an expected further retreat on Wall Street as spreading pessimism over corporate earnings reinforced concerns about the world economy.

Reuters - General Motors Corp is suspending matching payments to employee 401K plans as of November 1 and continues to assess its staffing needs as part of efforts to conserve cash amid a deep downturn in sales, the automaker said on Thursday.

Reuters - A top U.S. banking regulator said on Thursday the government must do more to guarantee mortgage loans to persuade lenders to modify their terms and help ward off a rising wave of foreclosures.