Equities

Income is the dominant theme among investors at the moment, with the focus on UK equity income spreading to other areas including Asia and emerging markets, according to Adrian Lowcock, senior investment manager at Hargreaves Lansdown.

Lloyds Banking Group has been criticised after announcing 550 job cuts which trade union Unite said would come on top of the 1,340 lay-offs revealed earlier this year.

Barclays Bank has agreed to compensate some customers affected by its takeover of ING Direct UK, if the move compromises savers' protection under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

Threadneedle is preparing to soft-close Philip Dicken's £1bn Pan-European Smaller Companies fund.

SECTOR REPORT

The UK's blue chip index is trading back near a five-year high this morning after a near 1% gain, as a bumper set of results lift shares.

Insurance giant Aviva is likely to shock the City when it posts a £3bn loss in its full-year results this week, the Sunday Times reports.

Consumers are waking up to the follies of making knee-jerk investment calls as they become aware of opportunities missed and the returns they could have achieved in the four years since the 2008 financial crisis, according to one adviser.

Jupiter Fund Management has announced a 13% increase in its total dividend for 2012, ahead of analyst expectations, as the group continues to strengthen its balance sheet.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has posted a pre-tax loss of £2.2bn in the fourth quarter, taking full year 2012 losses to £5.2bn, but despite the results the bank said the government is much closer to selling its stake.