Economics / Markets

The FTSE 100 edged higher in early afternoon trading Monday on optimism BP is beginning to take control of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, but the euro continues to languish.

Investors are risking their money by moving it in an over-optimistic reaction to the UK political deal, Bestinvest warns.

The FTSE suffered a sharp drop in afternoon trading to close more than 3% in the red as concerns over EU debt and another Greece bomb attack rattled markets.

Prudential's plans to buy AIG's Asian business edged a step closer as regulators look set to approve the deal.

The Cautious Managed sector was the top seller on Cofunds in April whilst UK All Companies saw a net outflow as the uncertain political situation weighed heavily on investor sentiment.

The FTSE opened more than 30 points up Thursday as investors were buoyed by Spanish plans to tackle its budget crisis, a host of strong trading updates and a rally on Wall St.

The main UK index recovered from a mixed morning as investors assessed the new coalition Government, closing up 46.24 points or 0.92% to 5,383.45.

Take a look at the mix of Tory and Lib Dem MPs who will be running Britain for the next five years.

Inflation is set to fall below its 2% target - even if interest rates remain at their record low, the Bank of England says in its Quarterly Inflation Report.

US authorities are understood to be investigating whether Morgan Stanley misled investors over mortgage derivatives.