US

BP has agreed to pay $4.5bn to settle charges related to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster.

US indices slumped overnight as prospect of politicians at loggerheads over the fiscal cliff continued to worry investors.

Uncertainty over the outcome of the US presidential election, the fiscal cliff and Hurricane Sandy saw inflows into global ETFs slow sharply in October, according to consultancy ETFGI.

US markets posted heavy losses for the second successive day of trading, amid fears Greece is set to default on a €5bn debt payment due next week.

If the US was to go off the fiscal cliff at the end of the year it would lead to a recession in the world's largest economy, the country's Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has warned.

The US technology sector has been "crushed" in recent weeks but remains on course for long-term gains, managers have insisted.

An alleged rogue trade in US technology giant Apple's shares has left a US brokerage fighting for survival.

The US added 171,000 jobs in October, a higher-than-expected figure that suggests the country's economic recovery remains on track.

The soaring share price of Lions Gate Entertainment and Disney's $4bn acquisition of Lucasfilm demonstrate the increasing power of content providers, according to Alliance Trust Asset Management's Justin Atkinson.

The devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy over the past few days could cost the US economy as much as $20bn, according to the latest estimates.