PRESS DIGEST-New York Times business news - Sept 21

Sept 21 (Reuters) - The following were the top stories on the New York Times business pages on Friday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* Wal-Mart Stores, the nation's largest retailer, said on Thursday it was dropping Amazon's Kindle tablets and e-readers, a sign of how seriously it views Amazon as a competitor in the consumer goods market.

* European regulators are set to approve a reduced version of the Universal Music Group's $1.9 billion takeover of EMI Music, people involved in the talks said.

* The desires of the British prime minister to cut the budget deficit are running up against a situation created over decades: the large number of public entitlements.

* Business software maker Oracle Corp reported quarterly earnings on Thursday that matched Wall Street's estimates, but a revenue decline signaled that the company was having a tougher time closing deals.