Olympus' former chief executive Michael Woodford yesterday dismissed as "desperate" reports that the board which ousted him is now considering tapping rival firms such as Sony and Fujifilm to raise as much as $1.3bn (£830m) in new capital.

Asian stock markets fell today as criticism by ratings agencies sparked scepticism about a historic European Union plan to fix a massive debt crisis by binding member economies closer together.

Setbacks in Europe's efforts to isolate a debt crisis before it blows up into an all-out recession sent Asian stock markets tumbling today.

The prospect of Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi stepping down teased investors back to the market today although concerns remain over his country's increasingly fragile finances.

Investors are continuing to pile into safe havens of gold, the Swiss franc and yen as market turmoil persisted on Friday.

New York

US stocks extended their losses last night, with the S&P 500 briefly falling more than 5 percent in the first session since Standard & Poor's cut America's top-tier AAA credit rating, with banks among the biggest drags. In noon trade, the Dow fell 380.39 points, or 3.32 per cent, to 11,051.58. The S&P 500 slid 51.74 points, or 4.31 per cent, to 1,147.11.

New York

Stocks slid amid signs that American consumer demand may be weakening, and fears about the Greek debt crisis. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 33.30 points, or 0.26 per cent, to 12,572.63 in afternoon trading.

Japan has promised to overhaul nuclear safety standards once it regains control of the wrecked Fukushima complex, admitting its current safeguards were not enough.

Japanese stocks rebounded today, recovering some of the massive losses sustained the last two days following a devastating earthquake and tsunami.

Japan's Nikkei stock index nosedived nearly 11% today as the earthquake-shattered country faced an unfolding nuclear crisis after a radiation leak was detected at a crippled power plant and residents were warned to stay indoors. Other Asian markets also tumbled.

German politicians backed a $1 trillion safety net to stabilise the euro but world stocks slid further today on fears Europe's debt crisis and tougher financial regulation will choke economic recovery.

Nintendo Co Ltd plans to launch a new model of its DS handheld game gear that allows users to play three-dimensional (3D) games without using special glasses.

Toshiba is in talks with a company backed by Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates to jointly develop advanced nuclear reactors, the Japanese electronics maker said, helping send its shares higher.