A former minister for Europe has urged the government to attach "health and safety" warnings to promotional material that encourages businesses to invest in Russia.

The Attorney-General has called for the first inspection of operations at the Serious Fraud Office(SFO).

Many investors in the current climate would baulk at the words of Laurence Fink, chief executive officer and co-founder of BlackRock, who said investors should have 100% of their investments in equities at the moment.

Britain will avoid a double dip recession and modest growth should restart later this year, according to the CBI.

Protests errupted on the streets of Athens as Greece's parliament passed a package of austerity measures, demanded by the eurozone and IMF in return for a 130bn-euro ($170bn; £110bn) bailout to avoid default.

Five current and former employees of Royal Bank of Scotland's(RBS)investment banking arm have been arrested as part of a wider investigation into tax evasion thought to involve at least two other City banks.

UniCredit SpA (UCG), Intesa Sanpaolo SpA and Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA (BMPS) are among 34 Italian financial firms downgraded by Standard & Poor's.

Laurence Fink, chief executive officer and co-founder of BlackRock, said investors should have 100% of their investments in equities because of valuations and higher returns than bonds.

BHP Billiton, the world's largest miner, said a deterioration in demand for commodities contributed to a 5.5% slide in half-year profits to $9.94bn (£6.25bn).

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