The largest U.S. mortgage finance company posted a $2.3 billion loss in the second quarter of this year, after taking a battering from the worst housing market in decades.

Officials at Fannie Mae said Friday they are also slashing the company's dividend and taking other measures to save money.

Subprime Mortgage Crisis in NY, house auction

Fannie is a government-sponsored but shareholder-owned company designed to boost the amount of money available for mortgage loans. Fannie Mae and its rival Freddie Mac together hold or guarantee nearly half of the $12-trillion U.S. mortgage market.

Freddie reported a loss of hundreds of millions of dollars earlier this week.

Washington may help the mortgage giants by extending credit or buying their stock.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.