US stocks rose sharply today after Dallas Federal Reserve President Richard Fisher suggested inflation would be dampened by a slowing economy and said that while the housing and vehicle sectors were economic weak points, the rest of the US economy was doing “extremely well”.

US stocks regained ground today as the market’s cautious optimism was restored by government data showing only modest inflation, better-than-expected corporate earnings, announcements of two merger deals and the report of a third.

Around 4,000 ex-banana plantation workers in Nicaragua are suing several transnational companies for damages, claiming that long-term exposure to pesticides has caused infertility and other illnesses.