Low-cost airline EasyJet has lifted profit expectations for its traditionally weaker first half but warned it could be buffeted by volatile exchange rates and oil prices in coming months.

HSBC set aside £236m to settle a probe into foreign exchange market rigging today – taking the bill for the scandal for British banks to more than £1.1bn.

BP’s profits have fallen after the energy giant was hit by lower oil prices and a slump in earnings from its investment in Russia’s Rosneft.

GlaxoSmithKline, battered by weak US drug sales and a bribery scandal inChina, set out a bold recovery plan yesterday, including an initial public offering of part of its fast-growing HIV and AIDS drugs business.

Budget airline easyJet was counting the cost of unrest and political tensions affecting Israel, Egypt and Russia after its latest trading update prompted the City to scale back forecasts for annual profits.

Soaring demand for luxury goods in China helped Burberry set record annual revenues and profits, but the fashion chain warned of lower profits next year if the pound remained strong.

Vodafone Ireland lost 41,000 mobile phone customers last year, according to figures released in its results for the year to March 21, as the company’s European operations struggled.

Low-cost airline easyJet said that a smaller-than-expected first-half loss, helped by tight cost control and more business passengers, showed it could cope with growing competition and disruption to bookings from June’s soccer World Cup.

Manchester United’s mountainous debt pile and wage bill meant its owners could ill afford to give David Moyes the same amount of time to succeed as his predecessor Alex Ferguson, it was claimed today.

Twitter has set the ball rolling for one of the most eagerly anticipated stock market flotations since Facebook took the plunge last year.

Europe’s economic woes were felt by Vodafone today after the mobile phone giant reported its first drop in annual revenues for seven years.

Aviva’s new boss offered some encouragement for beleaguered investors today after seeing a solid start to the insurer’s new financial year.

News of Alex Ferguson’s retirement caused an initial dip in Manchester United’s share price on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday, but by the close of trading it had bounced back.

Retail giant Tesco marked the end of the supermarket "space race" today as it scrapped more than 100 major store developments and admitted future growth would be focused more online.

Home improvement chain B&Q posted a 6.4% drop in sales today after poor weather and more consumer caution led to a “tough” winter quarter.

The number of customers using smartphones on the Vodafone Ireland network has increased by 6.7% in the quarter ended September 30, 2012, it announced today.

BP’s recovery in the wake of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster gathered pace yesterday as it surprised investors with a bigger-than-expected hike to its dividend.

Guinness-to-Smirnoff owner Diageo today warned that ongoing weakness in South Korea was weighing on one of its key growth markets.

The growing thirst of emerging markets for whiskey, gin and vodka cheered Guinness and Baileys firm Diageo today as its western markets continued to suffer a debt hangover.

Standard Chartered has seen £6bn (€7.46bn) wiped from its value amid fears it could lose its US banking licence after regulators branded the lender a “rogue institution” over its dealings with the Iranian government.

Standard Chartered has seen £6bn (€7.5bn) wiped from its value amid fears it could lose its US banking licence after regulators branded the lender a “rogue institution” over its dealings with the Iranian government.

The British banking industry was mired in fresh scandal today after Standard Chartered was branded a “rogue institution” for covering up billions of pounds of illegal transactions with the Iranian government.

Mobile phone giant Vodafone today revealed it was losing out to rivals offering “unlimited” deals as it posted a fall in UK revenues.

The rapid growth of Premier Inn and coffee chain Costa continued today after their owner Whitbread reported better-than-expected sales figures.

Stock markets surged today after a lifeline worth up to €100bn for Spain’s banks helped ease eurozone tensions.

Facebook shares are being offered to the public for $38 in one of the biggest ever US stock flotations.

Facebook is heading for one of the biggest ever US stock flotations when it sells hundreds of millions of shares to the public.

Tesco saw billions of pounds wiped from its shares today after the supermarket admitted it messed up its pricing strategy in a “disappointing” Christmas.

THE popularity of The X Factor, Doc Martin and rugby’s World Cup tournament helped boost broadcaster ITV’s third-quarter revenues, the company said yesterday.

UK-headquartered telecoms giant BT posted better-than-expected quarterly profits today with the number of broadband customers surging as they took up superfast connections.

The under-pressure boss of BP today insisted the beleaguered oil giant had reached a “turning point” despite production falling as it continues to sell off billions of dollars worth of assets in the wake of last year’s Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.

The squeeze on consumer spending is failing to deter coffee lovers after the owner of Costa today reported a surge in half-year sales.

European markets pulled out of their nosedive today after emergency action to shore up Italy and Spain helped prevent further turmoil.

The slump in world markets continued today despite efforts by world leaders to calm the crisis.

Financial markets were in turmoil today after a collapse in share prices around the world.

Oil prices have tumbled after a shock move by the International Energy Agency to open its emergency reserves.

The FTSE 100 Index slumped more than 2% today after markets across the globe were shocked by a downgrade of the US government’s debt outlook.

Bosses at BP will unveil the oil giant’s first annual loss in nearly two decades tomorrow following a disastrous year for the blue-chip company.

Fashion house Burberry today reported a 50% profits surge driven by sales of leather handbags and its relaunched menswear business.

TESCO said its business in Ireland has successfully turned around, with growth having resumed and market share increasing.

IRISH shares lost more ground yesterday, falling just over 2%, with CRH, airlines and banks hit.

BP pressed on with its bid to cap the Gulf of Mexico spill yesterday amid a new blow to its tattered image as a credit agency warned the clean-up costs will weigh on the oil giant for years.

London’s top stocks lost another 1% today as worries over US and European economic health sparked a sell-off for the second session in a row.

TESCO – spearheading a supermarket price war in Ireland – said it had a very strong performance over Christmas, reporting the best results in three years.