Russia

The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil has dropped to below $46 in early trading, a fresh six-year low, as the commodity's collapse showed no sign of slowing down.

The precipitous decline in the oil price has continued this morning, with a further slump in Brent crude seeing it trade below $50 for the first time in more than five years.

Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi, the most significant voice in the OPEC cartel, has said the group will not cut production even if the price of oil falls to $20 a barrel.

Vladimir Putin has said Russia could take as long as two years to recover from its burgeoning economic crisis.

The FTSE 100 has endured a volatile session as the impact of the falling oil price and Russian currency collapse continue to reverberate around global markets.

Russia has raised its interest rates to 17% to prevent further depreciation of the ruble, which has halved in value against the dollar this year.

A number of emerging market countries have already started implementing significant reforms which could spur economic growth, according to Templeton's Mark Mobius.

A volatile year ahead for investors

Europe's economy is clearly deteriorating, with the stand-off between Germany and the peripheral nations continuing to hamper attempts to reform the region.

The Bank of Russia has taken steps to halt the collapse of the rouble, as the currency continues to hit new record lows against the US dollar and the euro on falling oil prices.