
The number of people unemployed in the UK rose by 43,000 to 2.5 million during the three months to February, official figures have shown. The jobless total is now at its highest since 1994.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc said first-quarter earnings nearly doubled, while in London Britain's financial regulator launched a formal probe related to civil fraud allegations against the Wall Street bank.

Prospects for the UK's economic recovery remain poor this year with output growth of 1% or less predicted in 2010, a leading forecaster has warned. It also suggested that although consumer spending is on the rise, it will remain too weak to sustain a recovery this year as consumers try to pay off debts as quickly as possible.