Election 2015
Uncertainty reigns
The race remains close ahead of Thursday's general election, with neither of the two largest parties able to demonstrate a lead across the polls. Much of the political debate centred on the policy negotiations that would ensue in the likely event that no party forms an overall majority. A survey by wealth manager St James's Place found just over half of its clients (54 per cent) were concerned about the impact of the election. In contrast, more than two-thirds were concerned about the state of the economy and 43 per cent over the potential impact of the UK leaving the European Union. But the equity markets have not yet shown much concern at the prospect of a hung parliament.
CEO on trial
Sainsbury's vs Egypt
An Egyptian court has sentenced J Sainsbury chief executive Mike Coupe to two years in prison in relation to a 14-year old business dispute. The case centres on the fallout from a failed joint venture in the country, and although Mr Coupe was not even an employee of the grocer at the time, he was reportedly held responsible by the court as its chief executive and most senior employee. The company has said the ruling was "groundless", that Mr Coupe was tried in absentia without prior notice, and that he flew to the country last weekend to appeal against the sentence, which has been deferred until next month.
Greek reshuffle
Varoufakis sidelined
Yanis Varoufakis, Greece's motorcycle-riding, leather jacket-wearing finance minister, has been sidelined by the country's prime minister Alexis Tsipras in a rejig of the indebted eurozone country's bailout negotiation team. The move was greeted with a rise in the Greek stock market and positive reaction from eurozone officials, and followed what has been characterised as an acrimonious meeting last month between Greece and its international creditors. Concerns are running high that Athens could default on its debts, with reports from the meeting that Mr Varoufakis warned government finances could be expended within weeks.
Gulf tensions
Iran seize ship
A Marshall Islands-registered container ship has been seized by Iranian forces in the Gulf, demonstrating the tension around the crucial trading route. Warning shots were reportedly fired as the ship was intercepted in the strait of Homruz, but no injuries have been reported. Vessel tracking services located the ship, operated by the Danish shipping giant Maersk, near the island of Qeshm. Iran's Fars news agency said the ship was seized after a court order was issued. Tension has been ratcheted up in the region after a Saudi Arabia-led coalition began airstrikes against neighbouring Yemen.
Wall Street highs
Twitter woes
The historically tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite registered an all-time peak, passing the previous record set in 2000, before falling back. After the dot-com crash and the financial crisis, the rise of social media and mobile technology has pushed the index upwards. Elsewhere on Wall Street, tech company Twitter - which Nasdaq lost out on listing to rival the New York Stock Exchange - saw its stock price plunge by as much as 26 per cent after Nasdaq's Shareholder.com service accidentally published its financial results earlier than planned. These results included weaker than expected revenue growth.
Swedish QE
Bond-buying expanding
The Riksbank, Sweden's central bank, has decided to expand its quantitative easing programme by up to SKr50bn (£3.9bn), meaning it would own as much as SKr90bn in government bonds. But the central bank did not reduce its benchmark interest rate, contrary to expectations. Bond buying within and outside of the eurozone countries has pushed up European indices since the start of the year, boosting companies with exposure to the region such as asset manager Henderson Global Investors, which saw its assets under management increase by a tenth in the first quarter.
