Jon Corzine has gone from a possible candidate for US Treasury Secretary to the man who presided over the fall of MF Global and the eighth-largest bankruptcy in American history, writes Michael Daly

Wall Street remained mired in uncertainty today, ending an erratic session narrowly mixed as investors’ inflation worries worsened in the face of a sharp jump in import prices.

The ousted British-born chief executive of commodities brokerage firm Refco has been released from a US jail on a $50m (€41.8m) bond following his arrest for alleged securities fraud.

Oil prices spiralled towards the $50 mark today as concerns over supplies intensified after violence flared in Iraq.

Crude futures rose to a new high near $49 a barrel as the threat of sabotage to Iraqi oil infrastructure loomed larger than promises from Baghdad to boost exports in coming days.