Pick of the early market news

Despite Mervyn King's grim reading of the economy yesterday, the FTSE 100 slipped just eight points to 5,509.

More falls today? Last night the NYSE closed down 1.57% while the S&P 500 lost 1.65%. To add to the drama, the chief of the European arm of the IMF has just resigned. Plenty of news to absorb while Angela Merkel claims Germany is willing to give up some national sovereignty to save the euro... Hold tight, folks.