AP - Sales of new homes fell in June for the seventh time in the past eight months, more proof that the worst housing slump in decades is getting deeper.

AP - Friday was France's turn to greet Barack Obama who was to visit Paris just long enough for talks with the French president and a joint news conference, but no rousing speech like the one he delivered in Berlin despite his solid French fan club.

AP - A hole the size of a small car in the underside of a Qantas jumbo jet carrying 346 passengers over the South China Sea forced the pilot to make an emergency landing Friday after a rapid descent.

AP - South Texas was getting back on its feet Friday as residents filter through the soggy mess left by Hurricane Dolly despite thousands still being without power.

AP - Scientists have exposed some of the mystery behind the northern lights. On Thursday, NASA released findings that indicate magnetic explosions about one-third of the way to the moon cause the northern lights, or aurora borealis, to burst in spectacular shapes and colors, and dance across the sky.

AP - Upbeat economic data lifted stocks Friday, placating a market pummeled a day earlier by concerns about housing and the financial sector.

AP - China's booming Internet population has surpassed the United States to become the world's biggest, with 253 million people online despite government controls on Web use, according to government data reported Friday.