PRESS DIGEST - Wall Street Journal - July 7

July 7 (Reuters) - The following were the top stories in The Wall Street Journal on Monday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* General Motors Corp (GM.N) is preparing to cut thousands more white-collar jobs and is considering whether it should sell or shutter more of its brands. Both moves are part of a broader re-evaluation of GM's strategy and of its ability to meet an internal projection of returning to profitability in 2010.

* Sen. Barack Obama, the presumed Democratic presidential nominee, faces dissent from dozens of top fund-raisers and other supporters of former rival Sen. Hillary Clinton, who are angry over how she was treated during their bruising primary battle and are hesitating to back Sen. Obama.

* Oil's rapid rise is lending weight to predictions that prices could hit $200 a barrel this year, a price that would wreak deeper havoc on the world's airlines and automobile industries.

* Merrill Lynch & Co Inc MER.N is moving closer to selling stakes in financial firm BlackRock Inc (BLK.N) and information provider Bloomberg LP, as the Wall Street firm scrambles to raise cash to make up for $6 billion in coming write-downs, say people familiar with the matter.

* The House Agriculture Committee will host hearings examining whether the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has a strong-enough grip on the fast-growing, $5 trillion futures market for oil and other commodities or needs other tools. It also will examine how that market is affected by the $9 trillion "over-the-counter" market that has mushroomed outside CFTC regulation.

* The faltering economy took a toll on malls and shopping centers in the second quarter, but the rental-apartment market fared better. Retail vacancies rose to multiyear highs as retailers closed stores and curtailed expansion plans.

* Fresenius SE (FREG_p.DE) said it will buy APP Pharmaceuticals Inc APPX.O for $3.7 billion plus the assumption of $940 million in outstanding debt in a deal that highlights international interest in the U.S. pharmaceutical industry.

* A key financial-industry investment group said U.S. regulatory proposals to improve the credibility of bond ratings may not go far enough.