Falling clothes sales at Marks & Spencer have dragged down the retail giant's annual profits to an eight-year low, as it said the executive behind the �Your M&S� branding is to step down.

Britain will be advised to sell off the state's holdings in the Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Bank by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a move that will embolden George Osborne as he attempts to justify his economic strategy.

Asian stocks rose to the highest in five years led by Japanese equities, after the Bank of Japan maintained its easing plan and before Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke's testimony on the economy.

The annual rate of inflation eased to 2.4 per cent last month, thanks to falls in petrol prices and air fares, the Office for National Statistics reported yesterday.

LONDON�The storm brewing over Apple Inc.'s tax practices in the U.S. has already rained down hard in the U.K., where multinationals including Starbucks Corp.

The taxman had expected to save �8bn by 2015 from reducing errors and fraud in the administration of tax credits, but is expected to miss its target by �5bn.

Michael Fallon was injected into the Department of Business as a minister with the aim of providing some steely, private sector values.

Fiat Industrial aims to move its tax residency to the UK from Italy after a merger with US business CNH to take advantage of a lighter fiscal regime, according to a regulatory filing.

The Institute of Directors claimed the fledgling industry could create 74,000 jobs, more than double its previous estimate of the industry's potential.

A food hygiene inspection has named Bexley the dirtiest place in Britain to eat out. Six of the 10 worst spots for grubby outlets fell within the Kent town, out of 2,000 postcode areas checked.