However there was better news on bond markets

However there was better news on bond markets where the yield on both Spanish and Italian government bonds fell for a second day in response to the decision by the European Central Bank (ECB) to intervene on behalf of the weakened eurozone members and to begin buying up Spanish and Italian debt in order to reduce the two countries' borrowing costs. Both are struggling to avoid the kind of bailouts necessary to rescue ailing Greece, Portugal and Ireland.

Elena Salgado, the Spanish finance minister, insisted yesterday that her country did not need a bailout. She said Spain's total debt was 20 percentage points below the EU average.

Germany had been critical of the ECB's plan to prop up Spain and Italy, arguing that both countries should impose more stringent austerity measures before the bank intervened.

Alan Brown, chief investment officer at the fund-management group Schroders, blamed weak economic data across the eurozone, Britain and America over the past weeks, for the nervous markets. "Investors are recognising that the authorities have very few policy levers left," he said. "They have exhausted fiscal options and interest rates in most places are at rock bottom."

Apple signs deal to open its biggest store in the world at New York's Grand Central

Apple signs deal to open its biggest store in the world at New York's Grand Central

TECH giant Apple has inked a 10-year deal with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to open its largest store in the world in New York's Grand Central Terminal.

The 23,000-square-foot (2136sq m) store will take up Grand Central's north and northeast balconies, displacing Charlie Palmer's Metrazur restaurant, according to MTA documents, the New York Post said.

Apple will initially pay rent of $800,000 a year, nearly half a million more than Metrazur paid.

After 10 years, the rent will balloon to more than $1 million annually.

The company will also pay to refurbish the space.

The MTA is estimating that the deal will bring it a minimum of $5 million in profits.

The transit agency will ask its financial committee to approve the deal on Monday. If it passes as expected, the deal will go to the agency's board of directors on Wednesday for final approval.

In a statement, the MTA said the deal "has the potential to bring a great new shopping destination to iconic Grand Central Terminal and significantly increase revenues for the MTA's transportation system".

The government subsidizes all the incoming students in the two master programs

The government subsidizes all the incoming students in the two master programs, waiving their tuition fees. Some are even granted an extra scholarship of up to 6,000 yuan ($930) a year.

Fudan's School of Management is expanding, vying to become the Chinese equivalent to the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

This effort is in line with Shanghai's ambition to beef up its local business schools. In 2010,,cheap shoes, the government spent 320 million yuan on launching the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance under the auspices of Shanghai Jiaotong University, with the aim of making it a leading global business school within 12 years.

"Specialized degrees in finance are critical in training practitioners. They provide a short cut and tailor-made solution to meet the shortage of talented people in Shanghai," Lu said.

Li Luxiang contributed to this story.