Some of the U.S. data has been a bit weaker. A slowdown puts into question more rate rises there.

The Fed has been on 'autopilot' with its monetary tightening so that even bouts of weaker data, such as we saw after hurricane Katrina, failed to divert the Fed off course. But now, following the minutes of the December meeting, it is clear that policy will become more data dependent.

This bankruptcy, they'll emerge from. The question is do they emerge stronger or weaker.

By any rational calculation, Milosevic comes out of this much, much weaker.

Licenses are a little better, though they could have been a bit stronger. Margins were a little weaker than the Street had been looking for.

The survey was much weaker than expected indicating the bank's rate cut has done little to assuage the malaise that continues to afflict the U.K. consumer.