AP - Wall Street and Washington wrestled Friday with how to shore up mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two troubled pillars of the economy whose failure would deal a devastating blow to the already crippled housing market.

AFP - As panicked investors pushed US mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to the brink, debate swirled on whether the meltdown was a crisis of confidence or the onset of wider economic woes.

AFP - Federally-seized IndyMac Bank was due to reopen Monday after suffering one of the biggest bank closures in US history, as the troubled US mortgage industry struggles to stem further meltdown.

Reuters - Republican presidential contender John McCain said on Friday that government assistance would likely be needed for Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae because a failure of the two mortgage giants would have a ripple effect through the entire U.S. economy.

AFP - Shares of US mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac recouped most losses after an early freefall of some 50 percent, as Freddie Mac turned positive in late trade.

Reuters - Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac said on Friday that their finances were sufficiently sound to withstand the housing crisis as government officials scrambled to restore confidence in the country's two largest mortgage finance companies.

AP - The last thing the Bush White House and the rest of the country needed in these economically trying times was another financial crisis. But they got one.

Reuters - U.S. stocks tumbled on Friday as fears about the stability of the top two home financing providers, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, combined with oil at a record above $147 to cloud the economic outlook.

AFP - As panicked investors pushed US mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to the brink, debate swirled on whether the meltdown was a crisis of confidence or the onset of wider economic woes.

Reuters - Fear the two largest U.S. mortgage finance companies are in such poor health that they need a government bailout pushed financial markets lower on Friday, although stocks pared losses as officials began to talk of safety-net moves for the ailing sector.