The head of one of China's largest state-owned banks is to join the board of Barclays within a matter of weeks, people close to the UK bank said last night.

Added: 2008-04-20

China Development Bank boss to take seat at Barclays

Category: varial news

Jack Welch is gunning for his successor at General Electric after missed targets

It rounds off one of the worst seven days of Jeffrey Immelts career. Last Friday the chief executive of General Electric had to admit to Wall Street that profits at the worlds second biggest company had missed targets and had fallen 6 per cent. To make matters worse, the admission hit the entire New York stock market as traders interpreted the numbers as a sign that the US economy was in even worse trouble than first believed. The Dow Jones industrial average sank 256 points  a 2 per cent drop.

Pope-mania grips New York

Pope wraps up his US visit with prayers at Ground Zero and mass at the Yankee stadium

Persimmon shares tumble as Britain's biggest housebuilder warns on sales

Persimmon, Britain's largest housebuilder, was the biggest faller in the FTSE 100 this morning, after announcing that the crisis in the mortgage market has hit sales, forced the group to slash prices and postpone new building.