Legendary investor Warren Buffett has made a U-turn from his previous stance as an "uber bull", saying he now thinks the US is "still in a recession".

The FTSE 100 opened lower this morning, down 0.31% to 5,529, as miners saw falls across the board.

Ireland's GDP contracted 1.2% in the second quarter, according to an initial estimate released today, confounding analysts' expectations of 0.5% growth.

Portugal has raised €750m (£641m) in a successful Government bond auction, following in the footsteps of other southern European nations.

Eight in every 10 hedge funds could fold over the coming decade, according to star hedge fund manager Hugh Hendry.

High yield or ‘junk' bonds have seen a surge of investor interest, pushing prices to the levels seen before the credit crunch.

UK public borrowing rose to a record high in August, at £15.9bn, dwarfing the £12.51bn economists had predicted.

The Republic of Ireland saw its €1.5bn (£1.3bn) bond issue snapped up at auction today, pointing to investor confidence in the strength of the economy.

Investec is planning to securitise £250m worth of ‘non-standard' mortgages, including self-certified and subprime home loans, in the UK.

Barclays Wealth has developed a risk-graded fund range as part of a push into the intermediary market.