TOP STORIES 
 
GLOBAL STOCKS LITTLE CHANGED AS CHINA SLUMPS 

Global stock markets were little changed Friday, as investors mostly shrugged off a steep drop in Chinese equities.

CHINA INDUSTRIAL PROFITS DROPPED 4.6% ON YEAR IN OCTOBER 

Profits earned by China's industrial companies dropped 4.6% from a year earlier in October, extending a 0.1% decline recorded in September, as the world's second-largest economy faces continuing headwinds.

NEXTERA SELLS TEXAS PLANTS FOR $1.59 BILLION 

NextEra Energy Inc. said Friday it has agreed to sell two Texas natural gas power plants to Energy Future Holdings Corp. for $1.59 billion.

TOSHIBA MULLS SALE OF STAKE IN CHIP ARM 

Toshiba Corp. said it is considering selling part of its semiconductor business to raise financing in response to a drawn-out accounting scandal.

NORWAY APPOINTS CENTRAL BANKER TO OVERSEE OIL FUND 

Norway has appointed Dr. Egil Matsen, 46, as a deputy central bank governor in charge of overseeing the country's vast sovereign-wealth fund, as it expands into more complex investments.

STRESS TEST PRESSURE MAY SEE U.K. BANKS CUT DIVIDENDS 

As the Bank of England makes stress tests more difficult to pass, U.K. banks will have to retain more capital which may see many of them cutting dividend payouts.

GERMANS PLAN TO BUY LESS, DONATE MORE THIS CHRISTMAS 

Bells might ring gentler for Germany's retailers this year as consumers plan to spend less on Christmas presents and donate more to help the authorities cope with the influx of migrants from the Middle East and North Africa.

EUROZONE CONFIDENCE STEADIES 

Confidence levels among businesses and consumers across the eurozone remained relatively high before the terror attacks on Paris, a fresh indication that the economy may have been on course for a pickup after a third-quarter slowdown.

U.K. GDP GROWTH CRIMPED BY TRADE 

Feeble trade dragged down U.K. economic growth in the third quarter, government statisticians confirmed, as signs of a global slackening suggest the Bank of England will be in no hurry to raise interest rates.

BELGIAN POLICE DETAIN TWO MORE PEOPLE 

Belgian police detained two more people as part of a sweeping series of raids aimed at securing two fugitives who are wanted in connection with the terrorist attacks in Paris and foiling similar attacks in Brussels.

CRIMEA POWER OUTAGES MOVE INTO SIXTH DAY 

Activists continued to block repair work to power lines in southern Ukraine that supply electricity to Crimea, as power outages in the disputed peninsula move into their sixth straight day.

CHINESE DREDGER DELAYS IPO OVER ISLAND-BUILDING QUESTIONS 

A ship owned by the world's largest dredging company, CCCC Dredging, was seen in surveillance photos of the disputed Spratly Islands.

FRANCE'S ODDO TRUMPS FOSUN OFFER FOR FUND MANAGER 

Oddo, a French boutique investment-banking and asset-management firm, has made a $805 million offer for Belgium-headquartered rival BHF Kleinwort Benson, trumping an earlier approach by China's Fosun International.

SLOVAKIAN SHOP EYED AS SOURCE OF GUNS IN PRIOR TERROR ATTACKS 

A store in Slovakia was a source for weapons that European security officials say were used by jihadists in at least two terror attacks earlier this year, a troubling sign of how easily guns can travel across the continent's borders.

JAPAN'S COMPETING INFLATION GAUGES 

Prices in Japan fall again in October, a primary government index showed, but measures that excludes energy prices showed gains.

RIO TINTO BUCKS TREND TO BET ON BAUXITE 

The company approved a $1.9 billion bauxite project in northeastern Australia, bucking a trend among resources majors that have largely iced new mines.

ISRAEL TO SEND DIPLOMAT TO ENERGY AGENCY IN U.A.E. 

Israel will dispatch a diplomat to the International Renewable Energy Agency based in the United Arab Emirates, a move that shows how Israeli security interests are beginning to converge with Gulf States in the wake of the Iran nuclear deal.

GREECE FACES TWO-WEEK REFORM DEADLINE TO UNLOCK AID 

Greece has two weeks to implement 13 pieces of economic reform, including changes to its banking sector and the design of a privatization fund, to receive $1.1 billion in financial aid, according to an agreement struck by eurozone finance ministries.

FIVE ABDUCTED IN ATTACK ON POLISH CARGO SHIP OFF NIGERIA 

Armed men who attacked and plundered a cargo ship off the coast of Nigeria have abducted five of the Polish crew, officials said Friday.

ZAMBIA UNVEILS AUSTERITY MEASURES 

Zambia has announced a program of austerity measures to try to close a gaping budget deficit and restore confidence in southern Africa's third-largest economy amid a copper price slump.

 
 
 
  ======= DOW JONES NEWSWIRES ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARIES ======= 
 
 
Business 
BLACK FRIDAY SHOWDOWN: TARGET VS. AMAZON 
 

Before bargain-hunters entered stores on Thanksgiving, Target employees were busy inside shipping out online orders. The strategy provides a test for how retailers hope to thwart Amazon.

 
Business 
BIG BANKS CUT BACK ON SMALL BUSINESS 
 

The biggest banks in the U.S. are making far fewer loans to small businesses than they did a decade ago, ceding market share to alternative lenders that charge significantly higher rates.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 27, 2015 10:11 ET (15:11 GMT)