Bank stocks were among the gainers as investors bet that the financial sector would continue to heal.

A Swiss banker and lawyer are indicted by the US Justice Department on charges they helped Americans evade taxes.

Hong Kong-based businessman Carson Yeung makes an £81.5m all-cash offer for Birmingham City Football Club.

Football owners must look beyond playing success

The agency wants to attract more buyers for troubled institutions and is said to be considering a proposal to make it easier for private equity firms to buy them.

The Chelsea building society has revealed it has lost £41m as a result of mortgage fraud by some of its buy-to-let borrowers.

Scottish-based car retailer Arnold Clark is to create 700 new jobs across the UK by early next year, it is announced.

The US Justice Department gives approval for business software firm Oracle to take over computer hardware software maker Sun Microsystems.

Reuters - Stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.12 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.39 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.42 percent at 0730 GMT.

Reuters - The fate of Opel hangs in the balance as General Motors is poised to pick a buyer for the European carmaker after months of negotiations.

Reuters - The U.S. government said it will suspend its popular 'Cash for Clunkers' auto rebates on Monday as the program's $3 billion budget runs dry, a month after it was launched.

Reuters - Fujitsu Ltd (6702.T), Japan's biggest IT services firm, nearly quadrupled its annual net profit forecast after it unloaded shares in industrial robot maker Fanuc Ltd (6954.T) for 89 billion yen ($945 million), parrying speculation that it needs to raise capital.

The Nikkei average slipped 1.4 percent, with shares in automakers skidding on news that the United States will end the cash-for-clunkers program.

Carson Yeung makes an offer for Birmingham City, which would leave half of English Premier League clubs foreign-owned.

Japan Airlines is in talks to merge its cargo business with a division of Nippon Yusen, as demand for cargo transport falls

The Chelsea Building Society has revealed it has lost £41m as a result of mortgage fraud by some of its buy-to-let borrowers.

Slump and weak pound hit Channel booze cruises

Leading seaside resorts in England have been hit by above-average levels of unemployment despite the trend for 'staycations', says the TUC.

Reuters - General Motors is moving closer to picking Germany's favored buyer, Magna International and its Russian partners, for its Opel business when GM's board meets on Friday, sources close to the matter said.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin pledges to buy diamonds, as part of a $1bn (£605m) industry support package.

Reuters - Stock index futures rose on Friday after positive economic data from Europe and ahead of a U.S. report on existing home sales and a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on the lessons from the financial crisis.

Reuters - Women's clothing retailer AnnTaylor Stores Corp reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit on Friday, helped by improved merchandise at its LOFT stores and cost cuts.

U.S. shares rose after positive economic data from Europe, as investors awaited a report on home sales and a speech by the Federal Reserve chairman on the lessons from the financial crisis.

The automaker's former chief executive is being investigated in a probe into suspected market manipulation of Volkswagen shares.

A Chinese court sentenced four people to prison and imposed about $1.6 million in fines for distributing pirated versions of Windows XP and other software.

The oil price hits its highest level of the year, boosted by rises in Chinese stocks and a promising start to trading on Wall Street.

A merged financial services group takes 3,600 solicitors off its list of those handling conveyancing during house purchases.

Reuters - Stocks rose further on Friday, with the major indexes up more than 1 percent, after data showed sales of used homes in the U.S. rose more than expected in July.

AP - Several analysts said Friday they were concerned about Zumiez Inc.'s performance this upcoming holiday season, after the sports retailer posted a second-quarter loss and predicted a decline in same-store sales for the third quarter.

Ben S. Bernanke offered his most hopeful assessment of the economic situation in more than a year.

Buyers stormed back to the market in July, taking advantage of falling prices, lower interest rates and a tax credit for first-time homeowners, an industry group reported.

Shares jumped after a report showed existing home sales rose more than expected in July.

No longer just guides to the blind, service dogs now helping people with many disabilities, but a well-trained dog can be a heavy cost.

Markets rise after the head of the US central bank says the world's biggest economy is nearing the start of a recovery.

The oil price hits its highest level of the year, boosted by rises in Chinese stocks and a promising start to trading on Wall Street.

A Russian businessman who once said non-billionaires were 'losers' admits his company may not survive the recession.

Reuters - Stock indexes rose on Friday to fresh 2009 highs, as better-than-expected U.S. existing home sales and positive economic surveys in Europe added to optimism the economy was on the mend.

Reuters - General Motors is leaning toward picking Canada's Magna International (MGa.TO) and its Russian partners -- Germany's favored suitors -- as preferred buyers for the Opel business in Europe, sources close to the matter said on Friday.

The government?s ?cash for clunkers? program is winding down. Here are some answers to questions about the program as it comes to a close.

The unemployment rate fell in 17 states and the District of Columbia last month, a positive sign even as the pain of joblessness remains widespread.

Adam Smith turns out to be a useful guide to the ways Obama is trying to reshape the economy.

Reuters - U.S. stocks rallied to new 2009 highs on Friday on positive comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and data showing existing home sales rose for the fourth consecutive month.

Reuters - Chrysler Group LLC Deputy Chief Executive Jim Press has conveyed his plans to leave the automaker by November, according to a person briefed on the still-confidential discussion.

Reuters - Women's clothing retailer AnnTaylor Stores Corp beat Wall Street's profit expectations on Friday, helping to send shares up 1.5 percent.

Rates and fees are rising as new rules take effect. But with good credit, you can always switch card issuers.

Bradley Birkenfeld, an American, was given credit by prosecutors for voluntarily disclosing illegal tactics by the Swiss banking giant.

What you need to know as the car rebate program winds down.

Both Microsoft and an industry trade group applauded the decision, which will send four people to prison.

Reuters - Stocks ended sharply higher on Friday as investors were reassured by comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on prospects for an economic recovery. Confidence also was helped by stronger-than-expected housing data.

Reuters - Dow Jones & Co Inc has been talking to potential buyers about the sale of its stock-market indexing business, which includes the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Reuters - Chrysler Group LLC Deputy Chief Executive Jim Press said he plans to leave by November, ending a two-year stint at the automaker that included its slide into bankruptcy, according to two people briefed on the still-confidential discussions.

The News Corporation is said to be in talks to sell its stock-market index business, potentially separating the indexes from the newspaper that has long controlled it.

Many car dealers said they have decided not to make Cash for Clunker sales after Saturday, citing a bottleneck on the Web site where the paperwork must be filed.

James E. Press, who was lured to Chrysler after 37 years at Toyota, is believed to be leaving,.

Apple told the F.C.C. it is still studying the iPhone application, in part because of privacy concerns.

How Africans are working to boost regional trade

Reuters - Is it game over for the recession? Or will consumers stay in hibernation?

Reuters - Dow Jones & Co Inc has been talking to potential buyers about the sale of its stock market index business, which includes the Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI), the company's Wall Street Journal newspaper reported on Friday.

Reuters - Media company Tribune Co has reached a deal to sell the Chicago Cubs baseball team and other assets to the Ricketts family for $845 million, Tribune said on Friday.

AP - The Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its stock option backdating case against Ann Mather, a Google Inc. board member since November 2005 and former chief financial officer of Pixar Animation Studios.

Armed with a mounting evidence of an global economic recovery, bankers from around the world expressed growing confidence on Friday that the worst of the crisis is over.

The growth in Asia?s appetite for U.S. Treasuries is slowing, which means the United States may have to find others to finance its debt.

The News Corporation is said to be in talks to sell its stock-market index business, potentially separating the indexes from the newspaper that has long controlled it.

Bradley Birkenfeld, an American, was given credit by prosecutors for voluntarily disclosing illegal tactics by the Swiss banking giant.

Both Microsoft and an industry trade group applauded the decision, which will send four people to prison.

The chairman of state-backed Lloyds Banking Group says it was taken by surprise by the level of losses at HBOS.

Central bankers spot signs of economic recovery

Reuters - Is it game over for the recession? Or will consumers stay in hibernation?

Reuters - The board of General Motors Co declined on Friday to name Canada's Magna International (MGa.TO) as the winning bidder for Opel, leaving the fate of its German unit up in the air.

Reuters - U.S. regulators on Friday closed Texas lender Guaranty Bank and sold its assets to Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria , allowing Spain's second-largest bank to expand its reach in the U.S. market.

Central bankers from around the world are starting to focus on how to unwind the policies they used to fight the financial crisis.

Shares jumped after a report showed existing home sales rose more than expected in July.

At the Museum of American Finance, the ?greed, recklessness and arrogance? of Wall Street is on display.

Home Depot and Lowe?s are positioning for the wave of small, do-it-yourself repair and maintenance projects as sales suffer.

Credit cards are raising rates and fees as new federal rules take effect. But if your credit is good, you can always switch card issuers.

Guaranty Bank, a deeply troubled Texas lender, was sold on Friday to Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria of Spain in one of the largest government-assisted deals offered to a foreign bank.

The cash-for-clunkers program provided a short-term bonanza for automakers but will not have a lasting effect on the industry?s worst sales slump in 25 years.

Many car dealers said they have decided not to make Cash for Clunker sales after Saturday.

A new VW plant in Chattanooga, Tenn. will produce a midsize sedan that has been designed for American tastes.

The future of General Motors? European Opel division remained uncertain Friday after G.M.?s board could not decide on a buyer.

A rival of Continental, Mesaba, erroneously cited security rules for refusing to allow the passengers off a plane. They spent six hours aboard.

Court papers filed by lawyers for Robert Jaffe contended there was no evidence he was involved in Madoff?s fraud.

The unemployment rate fell in 17 states and the District of Columbia last month, a positive sign even as the pain of joblessness remains widespread.

Reuters - U.S. auto dealers are asking the government to extend the deadline for submissions for its 'Cash for Clunkers' program to August 31, citing computer problems that are delaying the entry of applications into the system.

The Ricketts family has an agreement in place, but the deal must still be approved by a bankruptcy judge and by three-fourths of the major league owners.

Lehman Brothers Holding warned that returning frozen hedge fund assets to creditors could be delayed by years after Britain?s High Court rejected its plan.

A unit of Lowe?s has agreed to pay $1.7 million to settle a sexual harassment case brought by three employees in Longview, Wash.

The retailer of women?s business attire reported a 21 percent decline in revenue in the second quarter and forecast continued pressure on sales this year.

Robert Scully, a former Morgan Stanley executive, was elected to its board, which now has 14 members.

The company finished testing Wi-Fi Internet access on four aircraft and planned to expand the service to all its planes beginning early next year.

The China Construction Bank Corporation said first-half profit fell 4.9 percent on contracting loan margins.

AP - Guaranty Bank, a big Texas lender that succumbed to losses on loans to homebuilders and mortgage-tied securities, was shut down by regulators Friday and most of its operations sold to a major Spanish bank.