China lifts stock market 'circuit breaker' controls
Sharp falls for shares in US, Tokyo, Hong Kong
Brent Crude falls below $33 per barrel
M&S chief executive Bolland to step down
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Financial Conduct Authority acting chief executive Tracey McDermott "doesn't want the job full-time," said Mr Osborne on Today.
"We are looking now for the very best candidate," he says. Ms McDermott has been tipped as a possible sucessor to Mr Wheatley who was sacked in the summer.
BBC Radio 5 Live
Was Marc Bolland pushed out?
"Categorically he was not not pushed, 100%. This was a decision we reached together and I'm glad to say it's been a great partnership," M&S chairman Robert Swannell tells Radio 5 live.
BBC Radio 5 Live
Image source, PARobert Swannell, chairman of M&S on Radio 5 live.
Marks and Spencer has "probably the best food business in the country" and he says new chief executive Steve Rowe played a big part in developing that unit.
On general merchandise - or the clothes business.
"They weren't great results," in the quarter. "No excuses for that."
However, Mr Swannell has seen the spring/summer clothes collections and that makes him "really confident" about the way the general merchandise business is going.
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Presenter John Humphries wonders if the chancellor is a bit too close to bankers.
Mr Osborne said it would be odd if he didn't meet up with the leaders of RBS, for example, which is still mostly owned by taxpayers.
On the EU and the free rein for ministers David Cameron has allowed, Mr Osborne said a reformed EU deal is something he is still "confident" of.
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On bank regulation Mr Osborne says he "doesn't accept" that policing of the industry has been weakened.
Bonuses can be clawed back and retail banks will be separated from their investment banking operations to protect consumer deposits, he said.
Martin Wheatley, former leader of the Financial Conduct Authority "did a good job" but it "needs new leadership".
On the banking culture probe, which has been dropped, he says the investigation would have been covering old ground, already investigated by the parliamentary commission on banking standards.
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Chancellor George Osborne said the UK's economy faces a "dangerous cocktail" of threats from the global economy.
He tells Today: "It is precisely because we have not abolished boom and bust that we need to take difficult steps."
The difficult times are not over, he adds.
He denies that the recovery is debt-fuelled, and points to recent unemployment numbers as signs of success.
The FTSE 100 was down around 2% at the open, following sharp losses for Asian shares.
Marks and Spencer shares edged 0.2% lower after reporting disappointing clothing sales for the Christmas period.
Homebuilder Persimmon said 2015 "has been another year of strong growth, external" with completions increasing by 8% to 14,572 new homes.
It bought 20,500 plots of new land for new developments and its cash pot swelled to £570m at 31 December from £378m a year earlier.
Image source, Majestic WineLike-for-like sales at Majestic Wine, external were up 7.3% for the 10 week period to 4 January.
Those weeks account for 30% of the company's annual sales, so it's a big deal for the company.
In April of last year Majestic bought online retailer Naked Wines. Its sales were up almost 29%.
Chief executive Rowan Gormley said the results were "encouraging".
BBC Radio 5 Live
Image source, EPAJulie Palmer, retail expert at Begbies Traynor, is on Radio 5 live.
She points out that the 5.8% drop in clothing sales is around about the same fall as last year, when they had problems with distribution and a new online platform.
"It's extremely disappointing," she says.
Today Programme
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Julie Palmer of Begbies Traynor says Mr Bolland's decision to leave now is a "shock", since he said in October he will stay for another two years to execute his turnaround plan for the firm.
"The turnaround plan has begun to show some signs of working, but it's too early to say whether the tenets of Marc Bolland's plans are the right ones," she says.
Mr Bolland is stepping down in April, but he will be paid until January 2017, which is the end of his notice period. This deal was approved by shareholders in 2014, the company points out.
Incoming chief Steve Rowe will receive a salary of £810,000. He will get the same bonus plan as Mr Bolland, but won't get any more pension allowance, said M&S.
Neil Saunders is managing director of retail consultancy Conlumino. He tweets:
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Retail analyst Nick Bubb is also concerned about the general merchandise (GM) category at M&S, which is mainly clothing.
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Market analyst Louise Cooper tweets:
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Image source, AFPMarks and Spencer has reported a 2.5% fall in total like-for-like sales in the UK for the 13 weeks to 26 December.
Like-for-like food sales were up 0.4%, but like-for-like general merchandise sales, which is largely clothing, fell 5.8%.
Image source, PAMarks and Spencer Group says that its chief executive Marc Bolland will retire in 2016 to be succeeded by Steve Rowe (right), who is executive director of "general merchandise", which includes clothing.
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The British Chambers of Commerce says the economy will still grow in 2016, albeit but at as slower pace, and mainly because of the services sector.
There is also trouble in the manufacturing sector, which is only 10% of the economy, but 50% of exports.
"Mending the roof while the sun shines didn't really happen," says the BCC's John Longworth, in a swipe at Chancellor George Osborne.
He says the Chancellor should have invested in long-term growth with some of the £27bn windfall from his Autumn Statement, which he instead used to ease austerity.
Donald Trump has threatened to withdraw almost £700m of investment in Britain according to the front page of The Daily Telegraph. It says Mr Trump is retaliating over Parliament's decision to discuss whether to ban him from entering the country.
On its front page The Times says a tax on sugary drinks is being considered by ministers, which would be a U-turn from previous policy.
The Financial Times reports that Netflix has now launched its service in 130 countries as it battles with Amazon to lead the market for online video.
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Image source, AFPGeorge Godber of Miton is back on the radio, this time on Today. China dropping the rate of the yuan against the dollar means cheaper Chinese goods, which could mean more deflation, as prices dip.
Why is deflation a problem? If consumers think prices will drop, they delay purchases. And inflation helps when it comes to paying off debt, which everyone has a lot of at the moment, particularly in the West.
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"We now have a body that is almost rudderless," says Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, talking about the City watchdog, which currently lacks a permanent chief executive.
"We are reverting to type" and lessons learned in the crisis may be forgotten, he says. Mr McDonnell says he fears Chancellor George Osborne is calling the shots on City regulation.
Mr Tyrie says "it's our job to put in place the best protection we can" ahead of any future financial crash.
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Is the City watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) going soft? In the summer it lost its chief executive Martin Wheatley, who was seen as tough on banks.
Also, the regulator recently dropped a probe into banking culture.
Treasury Select Committee chairman Andrew Tyrie will later today ask FCA bosses to appear before his committee to explain what's going on.
Mr Tyrie says dropping the probe into banking culture "looks odd, after all it was in their business plan".