Economics / Markets

CHINA

Supervision of the scandal hit Libor interest rate could move to Paris under plans being drawn up by the European Commission, dealing a potential blow to London's financial pre-eminence.

The co-founder of price comparison website Moneysupermarket.com has come under fire for avoiding more than £60m in tax by moving to Jersey.

Sainsbury's chief executive Justin King is one of the only big grocers to have earned an annual bonus after hitting targets triggering a 23% rise in total pay.

Wealthy investors were hit hardest by the recession but poorer households will feel the biggest squeeze in the coming years thanks to benefit cuts.

Manufacturing has begun to contract in the US and China for the first time since the Lehman crisis, raising fears of a synchronized downturn in the world's two largest economies.

Britain's top companies had a torrid 2012 as nearly a third of their profits were wiped out while revenue growth was sluggish at best, a new report has revealed, and profits would need to bounce back by 40% to justify the recent market surge.

London's leading share index has started the week firmly lower, with global sentiment knocked by worse than expected Chinese manufacturing data which had already sparked yet another slump for Japan's stock market.

Barclays has been dragged into the scandal surrounding Liberty Reserve, a US cash-transfer business accused of running the biggest money-laundering operation in American history.

Outgoing Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King has said people have "every right to be angry" with banks over the financial crisis.