Economics

Sterling has climbed to a four-year high against the dollar after the UK's jobless rate, one of the triggers for an interest rate rise, was breached.

UK CPI inflation fell for a sixth consecutive month in March to hit a fresh four-year low, according to latest figures from the Office for National Statistics.

Another day of losses yesterday has left the UK's main mid-cap index down almost 7% since the start of March - underperforming both large and small caps as warnings on valuations made at the start of the year ring true.

The FTSE 100 was down nearly 1% this morning, while gold was in the ascendency, as investors sold down BP amid the latest developments in Ukraine.

The FTSE 100 was down over 1% by 11am, with Hargreaves Lansdown leading the market lower after being downgraded by Morgan Stanley.

The Nasdaq index suffered its worst day since 2011 yesterday, dropping over 3% as investors continued to switch out of technology and biotechnology holdings.

Dovish Federal Reserve minutes sent US and Asian markets higher overnight, allaying fears the Fed could raise rates earlier than expected.

Lord Myners has announced his shock resignation from the board of the Co-op Group, leaving the mutual in the middle of a review into its future.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) upgraded its UK GDP forecast and now predicts the country will see stronger growth than any other G7 economy this year.

The UK's FTSE 100 index has fallen another 1% today as concerns over US tech companies and a variety of stock-specific issues hit returns for a second day running.