Portugal has said the austerity measures necessitated as part of its 78bn euro bailout package will plunge the country into recession.
Portugal's caretaker prime minister Jose Socrates has announced he has reached agreement on a bail-out from the EU and the International Monetary Fund.
Disposable incomes among British households are at their lowest peacetime levels since 1921, amid soaring inflation and low pay rises.
Portugal is set to receive an €80bn bailout package by the middle of May - as long as the beleaguered nation pushes through tough austerity measures.
Jean Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank, has defended yesterday's 25 basis point hike in interest rates as good for the eurozone, as EU leaders prepare for talks on the bailout of Portugal.
Portugal has become the third nation to ask the European Union for financial assistance.
Moody's has downgraded Portugal's credit rating for the second time in less than a month and has warned it could fall further.
On a momentous day of news, IFAonline looks at some of the best April Fool's stories around the world...
Lloyds Banking Group paid a £4.6m golden hello to its new chief executive, Antonio Horta-Osorio, to bring him across from Santander, it has been revealed.
Moody's has downgraded Portugal's government debt two more notches because of "subdued" growth prospects.