CLOROX QUITS DETERGENT BUSINESS.(Business)

Byline: Associated Press

Clorox Co. said Friday it will quit making powdered detergent and take a $125 million charge against earnings, ending a 3-year-old venture that failed against intense competition.

The company said it couldn't afford to spend enough money to compete with the nation's dominant detergent makers. Clorox makes a host of name-brand products and is the market leader in bleaches.

Analysts said Clorox was unable to meet a target of gaining 4 percent to 6 percent of the $4 billion U.S. detergent market, which is dominated by Procter & Gamble Co.'s Tide and Cheer brands and Lever Brothers Co.'s All and Whisk.

"It was too …