Economics

Shares in Royal Bank of Scotland topped the FTSE 100 this afternoon following reports Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund is considering buying a 'significant stake' in the bank.

The S&P 500 closed at its highest level since May 2008 after Fed chairman Ben Bernanke hinted the US central bank would keep in place its supportive monetary policy.

The UK government is in advanced talks to sell a significant stake in the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to Abu Dhabi.

Aberdeen Asset Management led the FTSE 100 leader board in afternoon trading after a trading update showed assets under management had soared by over 5% in two months.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined Coutts & Company £8.75m for failing to take reasonable care to establish and maintain effective anti-money laundering (AML) systems and controls.

THE BIG QUESTION

The Budget cut a little from public spending to allow some overall cuts in income tax.

British banks do not have enough capital to ensure they surivive if there is another crisis, the Bank of England has said.

Investment veteran Jim Rogers is banking on a collapse in the Chinese stock market, so he can snap up cheap shares in the region.

Barclays has launched an investment strategy to give investors exposure to the Vix volatility index.