Reuters - Honda Motor Co's (7267.T) quarterly earnings handily beat market estimates but it cut its annual profit and global car sales forecasts as it battles with rising costs for raw materials and a crumbling U.S. auto market.

AP - South Korea's Samsung Electronics said Friday that second-quarter net profit grew 51 percent compared with the same quarter last year led by its liquid crystal display and mobile phone businesses.

AP - Honda Motor Co. reported record profit for a fiscal first quarter Friday as sales growth in new markets offset the damage from a stronger yen and soaring material costs.

AFP - Swedish truckmaker Scania, which is majority-owned by Volkswagen, reported strong second-quarter profits on Friday, beating expectations but warning that 2009 could offer a bumpier ride.

Reuters - Fortune Brands Inc reported a quarterly profit that topped Wall Street's lowered expectations on Friday, after the consumer products maker had warned that weak consumer sentiment, the U.S. housing slump and higher taxes would depress earnings more than expected.

AP - Wall Street abruptly ended an earnings-driven rally and closed sharply lower Thursday after a steeper-than-expected decline in existing home sales and worries about the financial sector chilled the market's recent optimism. The major indexes fell about 2 percent, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which lost more than 280 points.

AP - Ford Motor Co. posted the worst quarterly performance in its history Thursday, losing $8.67 billion in the second quarter.