Economics / Markets

IFAs that outsource fund management may be "abdicating their responsibilities," according to the founder of Belfast-based firm Carrington Wealth Manager.

Poor interim results from Vodafone have pushed the FTSE 100 down 0.9% to a two-month low in morning trading.

Wealth management business Quilter and Co. is to merge with discretionary investment firm Cheviot Asset Management to form a new firm, Quilter Cheviot.

The UK's main inflation rate has jumped sharply to 2.7% in October, having fallen to a 34-month low of 2.2% in September.

David Cameron has issued one of his strongest defences of the banking sector yet, telling the Lord Major's banquet those who "trash the banks would end up trashing Britain".

FIVE THINGS

London's leading share index has opened flat in early trading, with investors cautious as Greek default fears resurface.

The Bank of England (BoE) is to hand the Treasury the interest it receives on its QE asset purchases, a move that reduces pressure on Chancellor George Osborne ahead of the Autumn Statement.

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.

The US may slip into recession if it were to fall off the fiscal cliff at the end of the year, the country's Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has warned.