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Barclays is being investigated by the US government over possible breaches of rules banning banks from doing business with states on a terrorist blacklist.
Barclays 'questioned over terrorist blacklist'
Warren Buffett in his latest letter to shareholders says there are three kinds of acquisitions - The Great, The Good and The Gruesome. HSBC's landmark purchase of the US sub-prime lender Household International in 2003 now looks firmly parked in the third category.
The gruesome reality of HSBC's US affairs
The credit crunch continued to wreak havoc on the American financial system yesterday as Radian postponed its annual results because it could not determine the extent of its bond insurance liabilities and creditors of Thornburg Mortgage demanded more than $270 million (136 million) of extra collateral that it cannot pay.
Radian delays results as credit crunch tightens grip on America
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett claims the United States has already fallen into recession and warned that shares prices still may have some way to fall.
US already in recession says Buffett
Pressure is building in Japan for official intervention to cap the surging yen before it triggers a sharp industrial slowdown and tips the country back into slump. The currency has appreciated by 19pc against the dollar to 103(50p) since July as Japanese investors retreat from global markets.
Japan may cap yen to stave off slump
Fears of a commodity crash are growing as speculation outstrips global demand. India faces a mountain of surplus sugar. Over 20m tonnes sit in warehouses, begging for buyers. By any definition, there is a global glut. Yet this has not stopped sugar futures jumping 40pc since December, reaching $14.18 (7.15) a pound on the March 2008 contract.
Sugar futures swept up in hunger for biofuels
Manufacturers forced up prices at the fastest rate on record last month as growth in the sector edged higher and input costs soared at the strongest pace in three years, figures showed yesterday.
Record rise in factory gate prices
Families are an average of 5 a week worse off than last year due to soaring petrol and food costs, according to new research. The average household had just 138 a week left in January after meeting essential costs such as food, clothes, housing, bills and transport, according to the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR).
Families see living costs rise 4.9pc since 2007
Foreign banks offering British savers high interest rates could be riskier than high street institutions, the financial regulator has warned. Jonathan Chapman, the FSA's head of financial capability, warned that customers could be placing themselves outside British deposit protection schemes if they saved with foreign banks.
FSA warning on saving with foreign banks