MARKETS / FINANCE

Following are highlights of the results of European bank stress tests which deemed 8 of 90 banks to have failed.

Stocks were mostly flat on Friday on heightened uncertainty about the government's ability to reach a debt-reduction deal, but a sharp rise in Google shares lifted the Nasdaq.

Eight European banks have failed a test of their ability to withstand a long recession and will have to raise just 2.5 billion euros ($3.5 billion) of capital, significantly less than expected.

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn put Clorox Co in play on Friday with a bid that values the company at more than $10 billion and suggested rivals consider paying much more for the bleach maker.

Italy's parliament was set on Friday to approve a 48 billion euro austerity package aimed at averting a full scale financial crisis but there were growing questions about the government's capacity for further reforms.

Score Day 6 of the debt talks a wash: House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said President Barack Obama, D-Ill., hasn't presented a real deficit reduction plan, but Obama countered that he not only has, but that the American people support his plan, which includes both revenue increases as well as spending cuts.

Eight European banks have failed a test of their ability to withstand a long recession and will have to raise just 2.5 billion euros ($3.5 billion) of capital, a significantly lower figure than expected.

Stocks advanced slightly in volatile trading on Friday after results from the European banks' stress tests came out slightly better than expected.

U.S. manufacturers are entering an period where growth is more muted, profit margins are harder to raise and earnings beats are less common.

U.S. consumer confidence hit a near 2-1/2 year low in early July and manufacturing output stalled in June, further frustrating expectations of a quick economic growth rebound in the second half of the year.

Swiss bank Credit Suisse is being probed by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of a broader investigation into banks suspected of helping Americans evade taxes.

Citigroup Inc's second-quarter profit jumped 24 percent as the bank lost less money than expected on bad U.S. loans.

Eight European banks are not strong enough to withstand a prolonged recession and need to raise 2.5 billion euros ($3.5 billion) in capital, an industry health check aimed at reviving investor confidence showed on Friday.

Consumer sentiment deteriorated in early July to the lowest level since March 2009 on increasing pessimism over falling income and rising unemployment, a survey released on Friday showed.

Italy's lower house of parliament voted in favor of a motion of confidence in the government on Friday called to support passage of a 48 billion euro austerity package due to be formally approved later in the evening.

Citigroup Inc posted higher-than-expected net income in the second quarter, helped by falling credit losses.

Consumer sentiment deteriorated in early July to the lowest level since March 2009 on increasing pessimism over falling income and rising unemployment, a survey released on Friday showed.

The top Republican on Friday said President Barack Obama and Democrats had still not put a serious deficit plan on the table, underscoring the acrimony plaguing negotiations to avert a government default.

Carl Icahn's takeover bid for Clorox (CLX) is yet another deft move for the aging businessman.

Wall Street gave up much of its early gains on Friday as signs of weakness in the U.S. economy and concern over European bank stress tests outweighed strong earnings from Google and Citigroup.

A gauge of manufacturing in New York State showed the sector unexpectedly contracted for the second month in a row as new orders worsened, the New York Federal Reserve said in a report on Friday.

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn offered to buy Clorox Co in a $10.2 billion deal, but also invited the household products maker to hold a go shop sale, which he said should yield a higher bid for the company.

Consumer confidence plummeted to its lowest level in more than two years in early July and factory output stalled in June, further diminishing hopes of a quick economic rebound in the second half of the year.

U.S. consumer prices fell 0.2 percent in June, the first monthly fall in a year, with the annual inflation rate unchanged at 3.6 percent, still the highest the Labor Department said.

Citigroup Inc's second-quarter profit jumped 24 percent as the bank lost less money than expected on bad U.S. loans.

Stocks rose on Friday after strong earnings from Google and Citigroup helped lift some of the angst about Europe's debt crisis and stalled U.S. budget talks.

'Carmageddon,' -- the weekend closure of a part of Interstate 405 in Los Angeles for construction and expansion, starts Friday at 7 p.m. PDT and ends Monday at 6 a.m. PDT. Advice from public officials is succinct: don't drive if you don't have to; also: shop and entertain close to home.

Consumer prices fell slightly more than expected in June to post their biggest drop in a year on weak gasoline costs, but underlying inflation pressures remain elevated.

The iPad 3 is expected to arrive with a new retina display with an improved 2058X1536 pixels resolution.