The 10 biggest business stories on Wednesday March 16

Chancellor George Osborne will deliver his Budget statement today; London Stock Exchange agrees £21 billion merger with Germany's Deutsche Börse

Budget: Spending cuts worth £4 billion and infrastructure spending announcements are expected (Getty)

1. Chancellor George Osborne will deliver his Budget statement today. Spending cuts worth £4 billion and infrastructure spending announcements are expected. He's also outlined significant changes in education. See the latest updates on our live blog.

2. Employment figures are to be released today. The headline rate is forecast to remain unchanged at 5.1 per cent, with February's claimant count falling by 9,100.

3. London Stock Exchange (LSE) and Deutsche Boerse have agreed terms of an “all-share merger of equals” to combine, LSE says. A UK holding company will acquire LSE and the Frankfurt-based stock exchange firm.

4. Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is cutting 448 investment banking jobs in the UK to cut costs. The Financial Times reports that the bank is cutting back office and middle office positions, including support and technology, as it tries to shrink the division.

5. The US Federal Reserve is expected to hold interest rates steady on Wednesday as it balances continued concerns about the health of the global economy.

6. Amazon is under investigation in Italy for alleged tax evasion, Francois Nuyts, Amazon’s chief for Italy and Spain, said in an interview on Tuesday, Bloomberg reports.

7. Sir Martin Sorrell, founder and chief executive of advertising giant WPP, will receive a £63 million pay cheque in one of the largest corporate payouts in history.

8. The Serious Fraud Office has closed its investigation into the $5.3 trillion (£3.7 trillion) a day foreign exchange market after almost two years, having sifted through in excess of half a million documents.

9. Shares of pharmaceuticals company Valeant fell 51 per cent on Tuesday after the company missed revenue expectations and cut its forward guidance.

10. British MPs want substantial changes to be made to proposed spying laws before they back them, Business Insider reports. The controversial Investigatory Powers Bill is going through parliament at the moment and is at the “second reading” stage. If passed in its current form, the bill would force telecoms companies to store internet browsing records for 12 months and authorise the bulk collection of personal data.