Economics

European markets edged lower this morning, echoing falls across Asia overnight, as investors showed caution over the outcome of the Greek debt swap deal.

Social networking giant Facebook is set to begin the process of becoming a publicly listed company this week, with reported valuations of between $75bn (£48bn) and $100bn dwarfing Google's $1.9bn IPO in 2004.

World renowned financier George Soros has outlined a fresh proposal for tackling the eurozone crisis, involving short-term loans for Italy and Spain.

Three years into Barack Obama's term as US president, how do equity market returns under this administration compare with those seen under previous leaders?

IMF chief Christine Lagarde has ramped up the pressure on Greece's private creditors to put a better offer on the table as debt swap negotiations continue this week.

Investors who took advantage of a €7.5bn rights offering by troubled Italian bank UniCredit are reaping the benefits as the company has delivered the largest equity return of any stock in the Euro Stoxx 50 index since 10 January.

The US economy expanded by less than forecast at 2.8% in the fourth quarter of 2011, official figures have revealed.

The Treasury today published the Financial Services Bill, which when passed will enshrine the new regulatory structure in law.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined a former compliance officer at David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital and a trader at JP Morgan Cazenove for insider trading and market abuse.

UK stocks were muted mid-morning as investors took profits and fretted once more over the outlook for Europe and the Greek debt deal.