Markets

Sarasin & Partners has renamed its multi-asset fund and cut charges on the product as part of several changes to the group's fund range.

ON UK GROWTH

ON UK EQUITIES

Vodafone, BP and some less predictable names including a number of UK housebuilders have been tipped to lead the income tables in 2014.

The Bank of England (BoE) could lower the unemployment target it has said must be reached before it raises interest rates, according to some experts, as jobless figures fall faster than expected.

Chancellor George Osborne has warned Britain still faces "painful cuts" in its efforts to achieve a stable economy.

Asia's major equity markets have fallen after data from China's services sector disappointed.

Investors are too fixated on tapering in the US and are leaving themselves overexposed to risks across equity markets, according to Investec's Alastair Mundy.

Nouriel Roubini, famed for his gloomy predictions on the global economy, has become the latest bear to turn more optimistic over prospects for 2014.

Aberdeen Asset Management is the biggest faller in the FTSE 100 index on the first trading day of 2014, as investors take profits after a stunning run higher for the business recently.