Agreement struck on rapid creation of eurozone banking supervisor, but direct bank recap timing unclear: The single supervisor run by the ECB will be setup over the course of next year, a rapid pace that marks a victory for a French-led group that had pushed for this first step to be taken quickly. But at an EU summit that stretched into the early hours of Friday morning, leaders failed to agree on the second key step in the process: when the eurozone's €500bn rescue fund will be able to start injecting cash directly into failing European banks, giving in to German resistance. (Financial Times) (Economist) (Wall Street Journal) (Reuters) Asian markets slipped on poor US tech earnings, but losses were limited by hopes raised by China's GDP data on Thursday, and stronger than expected US manufacturing data. Most losses were regained after news of the eurozone agreement. Microsoft's quarterly earnings dropped 22% amid weak demand for personal computers and slowing growth for its once-strong business software. Revenue for the September quarter was down 8%. ArcelorMittal is exploring the sale of a stake in its $10bn Canadian iron ore business, as the world's biggest steel company struggles to cope with the downturn in its key commodity. People familiar with the matter said ArcelorMittal had appointed advisers and had been sounding out potential buyers of a stake in the business, formerly known as Québec Cartier Mining. Google panic over results bungle: Speaking to analysts after the market closed on Thursday, Larry Page, chief executive, said: "I'm sorry for the scramble earlier today. The company's results were published during the trading day instead of after close, prompting an 8% fall in its share price. Citi estimated 40 cents of that was due to Motorola Mobility amortisation costs. Chipmaker AMD will cut 15% of its workforce as it struggles to cope with falling demand for PCs, a tougher economy and the growth of tablet devices. ING Groep NV... is near an agreement to sell its Hong Kong and Thailand insurance businesses for about $2.2 billion to Richard Li, son of Asia's richest man, said three people with knowledge of the matter. Walmart, the world's largest retailer by sales, is being investigated in India over accusations that it secretly invested in supermarkets, flouting a ban on foreign direct investment in the sector. Gillian Tett: Merkel, the eurozone, and the humiliation factor. It's the 25th anniversary of Black Monday - and the timing is ironic... (Bloomberg) Lucy Kellaway meets TED vulnerability legend Brene Brown. Failed deals are stirring up US-China tensions. Three policy choices for China's new leaders. Asian markets Nikkei 225 up +4.90 (+0.05%) at 8,988 Topix up +0.49 (+0.07%) at 752.79 Hang Seng up +37.68 (+0.18%) at 21,556 US markets S&P 500 down -3.57 (-0.24%) at 1,457 DJIA down -8.06 (-0.06%) at 13,549 Nasdaq down -31.25 (-1.01%) at 3,073 European markets Eurofirst 300 up +1.94 (+0.17%) at 1,121 FTSE100 up +6.14 (+0.10%) at 5,917 CAC 40 up +7.68 (+0.22%) at 3,535 Dax up +42.68 (+0.58%) at 7,437 Currencies €/$ 1.31 (1.31) $/¥ 79.32 (79.23) £/$ 1.61 (1.60) Commodities ($) Brent Crude (ICE) unchanged 0.00 at 112.42 Light Crude (Nymex) down -0.08 at 92.02 100 Oz Gold (Comex) down -2.20 at 1,741 Copper (Comex) unchanged 0.00 at 374.70 10-year government bond yields (%) US 1.83 UK 1.92 Germany 1.61 CDS (closing levels) Markit iTraxx SovX Western Europe -2.2bps at 109.38bp Markit iTraxx Europe +2.73bps at 118.39bp Markit iTraxx Xover +6.15bps at 482.28bp Markit CDX IG +1.24bps at 91bp