Economics / Markets

Henry "Hank" Paulson, the former US Treasury Secretary, admitted that he was wrong to accuse Britain of ruining the rescue of Lehman Brothers.

More than 60 leading economists have backed Alistair Darling's decision to delay spending cuts until 2011, creating a dividing line within the profession on the crucial general election issue of how to tackle the UK's huge public debt.

The Treasury could still hit its budget deficit target for the year despite worse-than-expected January public borrowing figures, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) says.

The Government borrowed £4.3bn in January, the first time there has been a budget deficit in January since records began in 1993.

The FTSE was flat in early trading Thursday despite a positive outlook from defence contractor BAE Systems.

The UK's soaring budget deficit has relegated it to the ranks of the "PIIGS", says research by RBC Capital Markets.

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously to keep interest rates on hold this month.

The FTSE was up 27.5 points (0.5%) to 5271.63, buoyed by gains among mining firms.

The EU has stripped Greece of its vote at a crucial meeting next month - the worst humiliation ever suffered by an EU member state.

Boosting economic growth is more important than controlling inflation, advisers say.