Citigroup shares drop as CEO plans to keep Smith Barney (Reuters)

A Citibank branch in San Francisco, June 23, 2008. (Robert Galbraith/Reuters)Reuters - Citigroup Inc shares tumbled for a fifth straight day, as Chief Executive Vikram Pandit tried to downplay speculation the banking giant might sell major businesses to restore its health and investor confidence.



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Bargain hunters lift stocks, but Citi sinks (Reuters)

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, November 20, 2008. (Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)Reuters - Stocks rose in choppy trade on Friday as investors snapped up cut-price shares in beaten down sectors, including commodities and energy, a day after Wall Street slid to 11-year lows.



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Wal-Mart's Scott retiring as CEO, Duke to succeed (Reuters)

Wal-Mart's Lee Scott (L) and Mike Duke in a combination image. The world's largest retailer said Scott will retire as chief executive early next year, and will be succeeded by Mike Duke, who heads its international operations. (Combination/Reuters)Reuters - * Lee Scott to retire as CEO February 1



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Hundreds wait at Verizon stores for BlackBerry Storm (Reuters)

A Research In Motion BlackBerry Storm is pictured in New York, November 20, 2008. (Lucas Jackson/Reuters)Reuters - Hundreds of people lined up at Verizon Wireless stores on Friday to buy the BlackBerry Storm, the first touch-screen phone from Research In Motion that aims to compete with Apple's iPhone.



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GM cutting production amid slow demand (Reuters)

G. Richard Wagoner, chairman and CEO of General Motors, responds to a question while testifying before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs in a hearing on 'Examining the State of the Domestic Automobile Industry,' on Capitol Hill in Washington November 18, 2008. (Molly Riley/Reuters)Reuters - General Motors Corp said on Friday it plans additional temporary plant shutdowns in the next two months in response to deteriorating market demand.



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FTSE-100 up 27.94 at 3,902.93 (AP)

AP - Share prices on the London Stock Exchange were higher at midday Friday.
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Report: Ford Germany needs no state bailout money (AP)

AP - Bernhard Mattes, chief of Ford Motor Co.'s German unit, said that while the company can survive without a bailout from the German state, it hopes the European Union will help the ailing auto industry with a loan package.
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UK electronics retailer DSG's shares jump (AP)

AP - Shares in DSG International PLC rose 21 percent Friday from a 20-year low after Credit Suisse raised its rating of the stock to "outperform" on the basis that market concern over the economic slowdown had left the stock too cheap.
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