IRELAND’S decision last October to guarantee all deposits and borrowings at six Irish banks to prevent a run on the banks rattled governments across Europe, according to a BBC documentary screened last night.

President Barack Obama will today use the first anniversary of Lehman Brothers’ collapse to talk about plans to wind down the government role in a financial sector.

The bad economic news is unrelenting and unforgiving, but the Government is fearful of taking action, even though our recession is the deepest in the developed world, our recovery is many years off and will be weak when it happens, and non-existent until the public finances are sorted

A busy week for UK blue-chip results sees figures from Vodafone, BT and Sainsbury’s, while the Bank of England’s latest economic forecasts are likely to make grim reading.

Royal Bank of Scotland shares plunged nearly 40% to a 15-year low today as speculation mounted over an imminent taxpayer-funded rescue of Britain’s banks.

Around 750 jobs were axed in the UK today by the administrators of collapsed investment bank Lehman Brothers’ European arm.

FIVE jet pilots used smoke plumes to script “Welcome to the 37th Ryder Cup” in the sky — officially re-igniting America and Europe’s intense biannual golfing rivalry.

Lloyds TSB’s £12.2bn (€15.3bn) rescue of HBOS sparked a shares bounce back on the FTSE 100 Index today after three straight days of losses.

The FTSE 100 Index closed at its lowest level for more than three years today after another traumatic session for UK blue chips.

London’s FTSE 100 Index today plunged to its lowest level in more than three years as the fall-out from Lehman Brothers’ collapse reverberated around the globe.

UK banking giant Barclays today said it was in talks over buying up some parts of the collapsed Lehman Brothers empire.

More than £50 billion was wiped off the value of blue chip stocks today as news of Lehman Brothers’ dramatic demise spread havoc throughout world stock markets.

London’s leading share index nose-dived 4% into the red today as Lehman Brothers’ demise sparked dramatic losses across stock markets globally.

Nagging worries about inflation bogged Wall Street down today with investors sending stocks lower as they tried to reconcile solid economic and earnings news, reports of anthrax discovered at the Pentagon, and a gloomy outlook on semiconductor stocks.