The struggling bus and train operator FirstGroup tapped investors for �615 million to cut debts and axed the dividend as profits slumped.

The independent board of Eurasian Natural Resources Corp has rejected a proposed offer by the embattled London-listed miner's billionaire founding shareholders to take it private.

Marks & Spencer has become the latest in a string of UK companies to face criticism from tax campaigners over the way it structures its online sales to Europe - with one describing its sales operation as similar to that of the internet retail giant Amazon.

David Cameron will not raise Google's tax affairs when he meets the company's chairman Eric Schmidt in Downing Street today, it emerged today.

Despite the breadth and diversity of life online, there are relatively few opportunities to make the kind of acquisitions that make the industry stop and take stock.

Helped by the warmer weather, footfall on the high-street rose 3.4pc year-on-year in April, the biggest increase since the run-up to Chrismtas in 2011.

LONDON�Ryanair Holdings PLC posted a rise in both profit and revenue for the year and forecast further growth in 2014 as it continued to open new bases and routes and take market share from struggling rival European carriers.

Europe has demanded that all depositors be given preferential treatment over debt holders in the event of a bank collapse, in contrast to Britain's statutory position that the protection is limited only to �insured� deposits of up to �85,000.

The price of a new home in London soared by almost 7 per cent in April as first-time buyers fought to get on to the property ladder.

High inflation has cost the UK economy �10bn over the last three years, says an influential report. And with inflation averaging 3.5%, instead of the government's target 2% rate, high inflation will remain "a permanent fixture", says the Ernst & Young Item Club.