Trading in Google shares was suspended for several hours in New York when the group announced a dramatic drop in profits, causing an immediate slide in its valuation.

US Outlook Si ves algo, di algo. If you see something, say something. It's written in all the subway cars here in New York City, a reminder we mustn't ignore suspicious packages or suspicious passengers. And as we trundled towards Wall Street station on Wednesday, I couldn't but think of it as a warning to stock-market investors, too. Si ves algo, di "algo".

The curse of Facebook's flotation has struck again as the Swiss banking giant UBS yesterday said it lost 349 million Swiss francs (£227m) on the social media website's disastrous debut.

Outlook You know how it is. You're on the telephone, or online, trying to order something and it all goes kaput because someone's system doesn't work properly.

The curse of Facebook's flotation has struck again as Swiss banking giant UBS yesterday said it lost Sfr349m (£227m) on the social media website's disastrous debut.

The Fender Stratocaster: those words alone are enough to send shivers down the spine of anyone with an ounce of rock'n'roll in them. But the grandiloquent nomenclature is one thing – the musical instrument itself quite another.

Facebook has suffered the first resignation of a top-flight executive since last month's controversial stock market flotation, adding to the headaches facing Mark Zuckerberg, who has seen the company's shares plummet since their debut.

US Outlook Bob Greifeld, the chief executive of Nasdaq, says the exchange has no legal obligation to compensate brokers who lost money because of software glitches that marred Facebook's flotation three weeks ago. But it says it will distribute $40m (£26m) to those who lost money when their trades didn't go through as requested.

US Outlook It is time to mothball the closing bell of the New York Stock Exchange. That ring-a-ling-a-ding might be iconic of American capitalism, but the opening hours of US exchanges are starting to look anachronistic in an age of 24-hour connectivity.

Facebook shares slid below $30 to a new low yesterday as nervous investors fled the company's shares, concerned about the social network's long-term growth prospects and an initial offering price that in retrospect may have been too rich.

Shares of Facebook took another tumble today, continuing a downward spiral that began at the start of the week.

Facebook shares slumped to more than 10 per cent below their float price on their second day trading as a public company.

The chief executive of Nasdaq said the stock exchange is “humbly embarrassed” by its bungling of Facebook's hugely anticipated debut as a public company on Friday.