AP - Mortgage financier Freddie Mac took a step toward issuing common and preferred stock to help bolster its balance sheet Friday when the Securities and Exchange Commission accepted its registration statement filed earlier in the day.

AFP - Troubled mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac announced plans Friday to raise 5.5 billion dollars through a new share offering as it registered with stock market regulators.

Reuters - Stocks soared on Thursday on a sharp drop in oil and several unexpectedly strong earnings reports, but the rally may not hold into Friday, given disappointing results from Google, Microsoft and Merrill Lynch after the bell.

AP - Wall Street shot higher Thursday, extending its rally into a second session as tumbling energy prices bolstered an already upbeat mood that followed stronger-than-expected quarterly reports from big names like JPMorgan Chase and United Technologies. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 200 points, bringing their two-day advance to more than 480.

AP - The banking sector looked a little brighter for a second straight day Thursday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. reported better-than-expected results despite a spike in mortgage and other loan defaults.

AP - Merrill Lynch & Co. on Thursday issued its latest assessment of the damage it has suffered from the credit crisis: its fourth straight quarterly loss and write-downs from failed investments approaching $40 billion.

AFP - US mortgage giant Freddie Mac may attempt to raise capital by selling up to 10 billion dollars in new shares after its stock rebounded this week, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

AFP - The FBI is investigating failed IndyMac Bank for possible mortgage fraud, US media reported on Thursday, citing US officials.

Reuters - Stocks climbed more than 1 percent on Thursday as oil prices dropped sharply for the third day, while banks rallied after stronger-than-expected results from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

AP - Wall Street is surging for the second straight day as tumbling energy prices bolster an already upbeat mood in the market. The Dow Jones industrial average is up 170 points at the 11,409 level, and has been up more than 200 in afternoon trading.

AP - JPMorgan Chase's profit took a 53 percent hit in the second quarter as mortgage and other loan defaults worsened, but the bank's results were better than expected and gave Wall Street a lift.