(Reuters) - Johnson & Johnson on Friday agreed to pay $70 million to settle U.S. charges that it paid bribes and kickbacks to win business overseas, the first big drug company to settle since the Obama administration began its scrutiny of the industry more than a year ago. Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay a $21.4 million fine to settle Justice Department criminal charges and pay more than $48.6 million in disgorgement and interest to settle charges by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the agencies said.

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(Reuters) - With a midnight deadline approaching, the White House and Congress scrambled on Friday to break a budget impasse that threatens to shut down the government and idle thousands of federal workers. Democratic and Republican congressional leaders blamed each other for the stalemate over government funding for the rest of the fiscal year, which ends September 30, and could not even agree on what issues were the final stumbling blocks to a deal.

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(Reuters) - The Justice Department approved Google Inc's purchase of ticketing software company ITA Software as long as ITA's products remain available to Google's rivals, among other conditions. The Justice Department said on Friday that Google would be required to license the software, to continue to upgrade it and to establish firewalls to hide ITA clients' proprietary information.

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(Reuters) - The end of super-cheap money from the Federal Reserve is trumping corporate earnings results as a key risk to hedge for stock investors. Investors are looking forward to fewer price gyrations during this earnings season but are worried about how withdrawal of the Fed's extraordinary monetary support, expected in June, will affect shares.

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(Reuters) - "Let me be crystal clear," Barclays' star investment banker and new Chief Executive Bob Diamond told members of the British parliament in January. "We are going to be here in the United Kingdom, and this is the place that we want to succeed." It may be a reflection of how bankers still struggle to be taken at their word in the wake of the global financial crisis, but Diamond's statement convinced nobody. Rumors that Barclays and its bigger rival HSBC are ready to move their headquarters to Hong Kong or New York have flourished ever since.

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(Reuters) - Cross two more names off the list of 3M Co (MMM.N) insiders who could succeed George Buckley as chief executive if he steps down when he turns 65 next year. The diversified U.S. manufacturer, which has a tradition of ending its CEOs' contracts at that age, said on Friday that Executive Vice President Jean Lobey, 58, and Senior Vice President Robert MacDonald, 60, will retire in the next two months.

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(Reuters) - Brent crude jumped to a 32-month high above $125 on Friday as commodities climbed in unison on a weaker dollar after attacks on Libyan oil fields made long-term supply cuts more likely. Brent was poised for a fourth consecutive weekly gain, and its 5 percent rise would be the largest percentage rise since the week to February 25.

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(Reuters) - U.S. stocks edged up in choppy trading on Thursday, helped by jobless claims and same-store sales data, but technical resistance to further gains was strong. The S&P 500 closed Wednesday above a key technical level and its ability to hold above 1,333.58 will be tested at the close. The level is double the cycle low hit in March 2009 and is near a recent 2-1/2 year high of about 1,344, which could become yet another technical hurdle.

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(Reuters) - March was not as bad as expected for many retailers, suggesting that shoppers largely ignored higher gasoline prices and other concerns to treat themselves. Retailers such as Costco Wholesale Corp, BJ's Wholesale Club Inc and Limited Brands Inc reported much stronger-than-expected results, while Gap Inc was one of a handful of chain to fall short of expectations.

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(Reuters) - New claims for unemployment benefits fell slightly more than expected last week, pointing to firming labor market conditions. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits slipped 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 382,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists had forecast claims falling to 385,000.

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