UK consumer confidence unexpectedly rose for the second straight month in March, in an early signal that the government’s efforts to stimulate the economy and promote bank lending may be working.

Gordon Brown said on Monday, that there was a lot of work left to do to reach agreement at Thursday’s G-20 summit as he scaled back ambitions for a Bretton Woods II, named after the location in New Hampshire, where agreement was reached on post-war financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. Brown had also in recent times spoken of a global “new deal.”President Barack Obama will arrive in London this evening for the summit of the 20 leading developed and emerging economies.

Global economic confidence has halved in the two years since April 2007, with fear of a worsening economic situation driving the downturn, according to a survey of about 1,000 people in each of 22 countries by polling firm Ipsos Mori. Meanwhile on Monday,  the head of the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), said one in 10 workers in advanced economies will be without a job in 2010, “practically with no exceptions.”

Developing Asia must pursue more balanced growth to help protect it from future external shocks, according to the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) flagship economic publication, Asian Development Outlook 2009. Economic growth will slow in 2009 to its most sluggish pace since the 1997/1998 Asian financial crisis, the ADB said on Tuesday.

The US Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), a partnership between the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), on Monday released the 2008 Annual Report on the number of Internet crime complaints received. A total of 275,284 complaints were received in 2008—up from 206,884 (33 percent) over 2007. Total dollar loss reported in 2008 was $265 million—up from $239 million in 2007. The average individual loss was $931.

The seasonally adjusted Nomura/JMMA Japanese Manufacturing PMI (Purchasing Managers’ Index) remained deeply entrenched in negative territory in March, posting 33.8. Below 50 signals a contraction. Despite rising for the second straight month, the headline index signalled the fourth-sharpest deterioration in operating conditions recorded by the series to date.

Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services today said it had lowered its long-term sovereign credit rating on the Republic of Ireland to ‘AA+’ from ‘AAA.’ At the same time, the ‘A-1+’ short-term rating on the Republic was affirmed. The rating outlook is negative, which means further cuts in the near term are likely.

Barack Obama said today, that General Motors and Chrysler, the No 1 and No. 3 US carmakers, must survive without becoming “wards of the state” and the companies have one last, limited chance to“fundamentally restructure.”

Barack Obama said today, that General Motors and Chrysler, the No 1 and No. 3 US carmakers, must survive without becoming “wards of the state” and the companies have one last, limited chance to“fundamentally restructure.”

The Irish Financial Regulator says consumers can make substantial savings by shopping around for home insurance. The Regulator today published a new cost comparison survey, which shows that savings of up to €400 can be made by comparing prices, before buying a policy.