Chris Bailey, head of direct global investment at Close Brothers Asset Management, urges investors to look again at Japan as a guide to investing closer to home.
Marks & Spencer has reported a slight rise in sales in the first quarter of the year, lifted by its food business, although sales of clothing continued to fall.
Global markets soared on Wednesday after the US Federal Reserve inadvertently released minutes from its latest policy meeting five hours earlier than planned.
Shares in Prudential have fallen over 4% today after the FSA fined the insurer £30m over the failed AIA deal in 2010.
Japan's Nikkei index experienced its biggest fall since November as concerns about Cyprus and the eurozone continued to batter markets.
The FTSE 100 and sterling have both held on to gains from this morning following Chancellor George Osborne's 2013 Budget speech.
Cazenove's top performing UK Equity Income fund manager Matt Hudson has identified the potential winners among the UK's banking sector following a stellar year for all the big banks.