Economics

Paul Tucker, deputy governor for financial stability at the Bank of England, is to leave later this year after more than 30 years of service.

The volatility in markets continued overnight as stocks around the globe rebounded, led by Japan where the Nikkei jumped nearly 2%.

Investors should be cutting their exposure to Asia and emerging markets and looking more to the developed world, according to F&C co-head of multi-manager Gary Potter.

Specialist fund manager Polar Capital has seen assets under management surge in the last 12 months, rising by over 40% as inflows into Japan and climbing equity markets provide a boost.

The Nikkei endured further sharp losses on Thursday, entering a bear market as investors sold Japanese shares ahead of an expected tapering of QE by the US Federal Reserve.

RBS CEO Stephen Hester is to step down from the bank later this year as it "begins to prepare for privatisation".

The Bank of England's Andrew Haldane has said a possible sharp rise in bond yields represents the biggest risk for financial markets at present.

Defensive shares including utilities giant Severn Trent weighed on the FTSE 100 during morning trading, keeping a lid on gains following a tough week which has seen shares retreat further on US QE fears.

The UK economy grew by 0.6% in the three months to the end of May, driven primarily by growth in the production and private services sectors, according to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR).

A lack of further easing from the Japanese authorities coupled with fears over QE in Europe rattled markets today, sending the FTSE 100 to a seven-week low, with asset managers some of the biggest fallers.