Business news: as it happened

RBS shares rise more than 2pc amid job cuts, adding almost £1bn to the value of the company

RBS is cutting 20,000 jobs Photo: Getty

6.52 The FTSE has closed within two points of a 14 year closing high, at 6939.06, while Germany's DAX was up 0.4pc, the CAC was up 0.59pc and Spain's IBEX was up 0.09c.

The Dow Jones is up 0.24pc and S&P is up 0.28pc.

Fed 2008 doubts over Libor rates

16.37 Federal Reserve Official William Dudley voiced doubts over banks’ honesty in calculating Libor rates.

In an April 29-30 policy meeting, Mr Dudley said that following a Wall Street Journal article that Libor panellists were understating rates, a threat from the British Bankers Association to throw out dishonest panellists, “appears to have provoked an outbreak of veracity among at least some of the panellists.”

“There is considerable evidence that the official Libor fixing understates the rates paid by many banks for funding", Mr Dudley said.

Since 2008, an investigation into Libor rigging has led to billion pound penalties and criminal charges against dozens of individuals.

16.20 Even at the darkest moment of the financial crisis, these economists were pretty funny.

Here’s a discussion about People's Bank of China’s decision to cut its lending rate.

Mr Sheets: Yesterday the PBOC cut its main policy rate 27 basis points. I guess they felt that 26 would not have been enough and 28 would have been too much.

Chairman Bernanke: Three is a lucky number in China. Don was going to tell you that 3 cubed is 27. [Laughter].

Mr Kohn: He was also going to wonder, Mr. Chairman, whether we needed to harness the mystical powers. [Laughter]

Chairman Bernanke: I think we have good feng shui here.

Mr Sheets: The science of monetary policy.

16.15 Current Fed chair Janet Yellen said she was "decidedly more pessimistic about the economic outlook" but was still able to make a few jokes.