Yahoo has swept out embattled chief executive Scott Thompson to try to clean up a mess created by an exaggeration about his education that destroyed his credibility as he set out to turn the long-troubled internet company around.

A fresh sell-off took the FTSE 100 Index below 6,000 today as markets reacted to fears over the health of the US economy.

A drop in oil prices and strong earnings at PepsiCo and Cisco Systems propelled stocks higher today, with the Dow Jones industrial average surging more than 100 points.

A burst of optimism about second-quarter earnings propelled stocks sharply higher today, lifting the Dow Jones industrials more than 140 points.