The word of the day in financial markets: Anxious.

Shares of MetLife Inc. surged on Friday after the nation's largest life insurer reported second-quarter earnings that exceeded analysts' expectations.

Partisan to the core, Congress groped uncertainly Friday for a way to avoid a government default threatened for early next week. "We are almost out of time," warned President Barack Obama as U.S. financial markets trembled.

Nearly 50 percent of health customers are willing to pay more for quality customer service — a factor U.S. health insurers need to address to effectively compete for new clients — according to a new survey.