TOP STORIES
ABOUT 25 EUROZONE BANKS TO FAIL ECB STRESS TESTS
About 25 eurozone banks failed the ECB's financial-health checks
on the continent's leading lenders, although more than half of
these banks are said to have taken the necessary steps to shore up
their balance sheets this year.
U.S. STOCKS TRADE HIGHER
U.S. stocks rose, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite
on track to post their biggest weekly gains in more than a year, as
investor confidence in the health of the U.S. economy continued to
strengthen. The DJIA was up 90 points in midday trading.
P&G TO EXIT DURACELL BATTERY OPERATIONS
Procter & Gamble reported fiscal 1Q profit of $1.99 billion
as sales edged down to $20.79 billion. It also plans to exit its
Duracell battery business and will likely split the operation off
into a separate company. Shares up 2%.
MUSIC SALES AT APPLE ITUNES FALL MORE THAN 13%
Digital music sales at Apple's iTunes store are said to have
fallen 13% to 14% world-wide since the start of the year,
underscoring the fragility of the music industry's nascent
recovery.
U.S. QUARANTINE PROCEDURES QUESTIONED
Members of a House oversight committee said that a new Ebola
case in New York City raises questions about quarantine procedures
applied to U.S. troops and aid workers in the region on their
return to the U.S.
FORD'S PROFIT FALLS 34%
Ford's net income fell to $835 million from $1.27 billion a year
ago as lower truck production and higher warranty and recall costs
hurt results in its core North American operations and losses in
Europe widened. Shares down 4%.
U.S. TO NAME NEW AUTO-SAFETY CHIEF
The Obama administration is close to naming a permanent top
auto-safety regulator amid criticism of the agency's handling of
large air-bag recall, which an administration official called
"suboptimal."
UPS RESULTS BOOSTED BY OVERSEAS DELIVERIES
UPS's revenue rose 5.7% to $14.29 billion in the latest quarter,
helped by higher daily package volumes and strength overseas. It
posted a profit of $1.21 billion, or $1.32 a share. Results beat
expectations. Shares rose 1%.
U.S. NEW-HOME SALES UP 0.2% IN SEPTEMBER
New-home sales rose slightly in September after surging in
August, hitting their fastest pace of the recovery despite downward
revisions to sales during the summer months. Economists had
expected a September decline.
PEPSI TO TEST DRINKS IN SODASTREAM MACHINES
PepsiCo confirmed that it will test some of its drinks in
SodaStream International's home-carbonation machines in the U.S.
PepsiCo and SodaStream said their agreement is limited to a
"small-scale, limited-time test" scheduled for later this year.
TURKEY, KURDISH FORCES TRADE ACCUSATIONS
Syrian Kurds defending Kobani were locked in a political war of
words with Turkey over how many additional fighters would deploy to
help them battle the extremist Islamic State in the northern Syrian
city.
======= DOW JONES NEWSWIRES ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARIES =======
The Wall Street Journal
BOJ LIKELY TO STICK TO BULLISH INFLATION VIEW
The Bank of Japan will stick to its bullish inflation outlook
when it meets next week, while likely taking a more bearish view on
growth, people familiar with the central bank's thinking say.
Money Talks
BOND MARKET SEES GERMANY LOOKING LIKE JAPAN
Germany is widely seen as the eurozone's big winner, the
flagship of growth while other economies sank into long term
stagnation. Which makes it particularly worrying that the bond
market thinks Germany looks a lot like Japan.