Business news and markets: as it happened, August 21, 2013 17.00 Fed jitters persisted right to market close in Europe, where stocks ended the day down. The FTSE 100 fell 0.97pc to 6,390.84 points. Meanwhile Frankfurt's DAX 30 gave up 0.18pc to close at 8,285.41 points, while the CAC 40 in Paris fell 0.34pc to 4,015.09 points. 16.38 Alastair McCaig, market analyst at IG, also looks ahead to this evening's minutes: In the first couple of hours' trading it looks very much like Wall Street has succumbed to the malaise that has hung over its European counterparts, as traders twiddle their thumbs waiting for Ben Bernanke and the Fed team to speak. Although with an economy that has shown constant, if not outrageous signs of growth, US traders are still anxious over ability of equity markets to handle the start of the tapering process. Of course equity markets are fickle and within 24 hours of the first trench of tapering, markets will no doubt have already started speculating when the second cut will come. 15.42 While Eimear Daly at Monex Europe says the minutes are likely to spur more market volatility: Fed communication has been inconsistent to say the least. Initial comments regarding slowing the pace of asset purchases were interpreted as monetary tightening - equity markets capitulated and global money market rates spiked, threatening to squash the recovery that had initiated the change in policy thinking. In the June press conference, Bernanke set out an explicit future path for an end to QE, exacerbating the equity market sell-off. However, the June minutes brought a sharp reversal suggesting the future path for an end to QE was mere policy guidance, completely hinging on economic data. July's statement of the meeting downplayed the possibility of a near-term tapering. Economic growth was downgraded from "moderate" to "modest" and the bank recognised that the current low rate of inflation posed a risk to the economy. The July minutes will cut through all the rhetoric and give us a realistic view of the US economy, which will be less than complimentary. The minutes will question the preconceived September taper. Cue another bout of volatility as markets once again rethink the Fed taper. Ben Bernanke is chairman of the Federal Reserve (Photo: Reuters). 15.30 Here's William Nicholls, a dealer at Capital Spreads, on what to expect from tonight's Fed minutes: Tonight, all focus will lie with the Fed and the minutes from its July meeting. This is a backward looking figure and may not represent current opinion, given the ever ending nature of economic data, but it will provide the markets with the information they need to either track even lower, or decide that enough is enough. We are at the point now that investors feel so down in the dumps, that anything positive, like re-assurance that monetary policy will decrease in line with the improving economy, will give a massive boost to the wounded bulls. The markets have currently priced in the assumption that stimulus is literally going to end, all at once, which is not what has been documented by the Fed so far. 15.18 US markets have opened down ahead of tonight's Federal Reserve minutes. The Dow Jones industrial average opened down 0.25pc, at 14,968.99 while the broader S&P 500 fell 0.15pc to 1,649.81. 15.01 Back to those Johnson & Johnson lawsuits (see 14.12). A spokesman said: The company continues to fully prepare for several ASR Hip System lawsuits scheduled for trial this fall and next year. The company also continues to support ASR patients with a reimbursement program to address recall-related testing and treatment costs. Reports about a possible resolution of the litigation are premature and speculative, including any estimates of resolution amounts. 14.51 A British consultant who was detained in July as part of China's probe into GlaxoSmithKline's £320m alleged bribery scandal has been arrested, according to the British Embassy and his family. Peter Humphrey and his wife were detained in Shanghai on July 10 as police probed bribery allegations against the British drugmaker. It remains unclear if his arrest is directly linked to the GSK investigation. Mr Humphrey runs Hong Kong- based ChinaWhys, an investigation and risk consultancy that focuses on fraud and accounting for multinational businesses operating in China. 14.40 Heinz could axe up to 248 British and Irish staff following the sale of the baked beans maker to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway and private equity firm 3G Capital this year. In a statement, Heinz said: After a comprehensive evaluation process, the Company has developed a proposed new streamlined structure for Heinz UK & Ireland. Unfortunately, the proposals may result in a number of difficult organizational changes, including the elimination of 248 office positions across the UK and Ireland. We regret the impact this may have on Heinz employees and their families. Heinz employs around 2,600 staff in the UK and Ireland. 14.29 Joerg Asmussen is speaking in Athens. He says that he did not discuss a third rescue package for Greece with the country's prime minister and finance minister at a meeting today, and that all parties are focused on the current programme. Mr Asmussen adds that Greece's unemployment rate (at more than 25pc) is "unacceptable" and that the Eurogroup is committed to helping the country, although it must continue to implement reforms. 14.12 Johnson & Johnson, which makes everything from medical devices to baby lotion, is reportedly discussing paying more than $3bn (£1.91bn) to settle lawsuits over its recalled hip implants. The company is seeking to resolve as many as 11,500 lawsuits in America, and has considered paying more than $300,000 per case, Bloomberg reported, citing no fewer than five sources. The amount is much larger than the $2bn proposed in previous discussions. A spokesman for Johnson & Johnson is yet to return a request for comment. 13.38 ECB member Joerg Asmussen heads to Greece today to discuss reform progress with prime minister Antonis Samaras and finance minister Yannis Stournaras. "We are expecting an interesting exchange of views both with the finance minister and with the prime minister," government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou told Greece's Mega television. 13.20 Bloomberg, the news organisation caught up in a spying row after it emerged that journalists been using its $20,000-a-year terminals to keep tabs on users, has adopted further changes to its data policies following an external review. Although the review found that Bloomberg already had adequate client data policies in place, the company said employees no longer had access to anonymous chatrooms and would have the same access to client data that ordinary users have. Bloomberg said it would also hire a chief risk and compliance officer and "newsroom standards officer" to prevent similar breaches from happening again. It said it would also "facilitate greater physical separation between news and business colleagues." 12.43 However, Mr Kotthaus added that the finance ministry was not aware of any current discussions on how it would structure a third rescue for Greece. 12.36 Greece will require a fresh aid healthcheck during mid-2014, according to a German government spokesman. Martin Kotthaus told Reuters: It is August 2013, we will certainly have to look in mid 2014 at where we are, what the conditions are and whether the programme has been fulfilled. 12.10 The head of Germany's central bank has expressed his anger at the "recklessness" of those who invoke a eurozone break-up, and said an exit would have "grave consequences" for the whole of Europe. In an interview with German monthly Capital to be published tomorrow, Jens Weidmann said: What vexes me is how recklessly people invoke such a scenario. An exit from the euro would have grave consequences for the countries affected, as well as for everyone else. Monetary union is not some sort of club, which you can easily quit and then quickly sign up to again. Whoever suggests it underestimates the interconnectedness of the different eurozone economies. An exit would also have far-reaching consequences for our banks and companies. 11.40 The mixed picture in European markets has now settled and as we edge closer to the Fed minutes they have fallen into the red. The FTSE 100 is now down 0.8pc In Germany the Dax is down 0.3pc In France the Cac is down 0.2pc In Spain the Ibex is down 0.7pc In Italy the FTSE Mib is down 0.7pc Analysts seem unsure as to how much we will actually learn from the minutes. Ishaq Siddiqi at ETX Capital notes: Taper blues continue to curb enthusiasm to build risk across equity, commodity and forex markets. There is likely to be little fresh information in the minutes but even still, investors will be obsessing over the minutes on Wall Street later, Asian markets early Thursday and here in Europe tomorrow morning. Must note, FOMC minutes are backward looking so unwise to pin your view on tapering on the minutes alone. 11.19 UK manufacturing has turned a corner, according to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). Its latest monthly trends report showed total output growth accelerated to its fastest pace in two years in August. The figures may look underwhelming - 25pc of the 413 firms surveyed by the CBI reported that total order books were above normal and 26pc said they were below, giving a rounded balance of zero. However, the balance has remained in negative territory much much of the past few years. In a statement on Wednesday, the CBI said: There was particularly strong growth in a number of smaller sectors, including building materials, metal manufacture and electrical goods. Expectations for output growth over the coming three months also improved, to their strongest since March 2011, with building materials in particular anticipating another robust quarter. 11.12 Back in markets Standard Life is leading the blue-chip index after Credit Suisse upgraded its rating to "neutral" from "underperfom." It also raised its target price to 362p from 325p, driving shares in the financial group up 2.1pc in early trading to 350p. 11.09 Mr Papaconstantinou also said that there was "hatred" in Greece towards some of their European neighbours (no prizes for guessing who's at the top of the list) because of the extent of the austerity measures imposed. When asked how German Chancellor Angela Merkel reacted to the bail-out, he let out an audible sigh, and said: It took a long time to convince Angela Merkel that there was no way out without a bail-out. A number of countries - mostly Germany - thought that if Greece took more and more austerity measures, there would be no need to have a bail-out, because markets would be convinced, and markets would continue to lend. We knew that from the very beginning that this was fantasy. That the markets were looking for a stop-gap. 11.04 It's worth watching this interview with George Papaconstantinou, the country's former finance minister, who appeared on the BBC's Hard Talk last night, admitting that Greece could need more bail-out cash (watch from about 20 minutes). 10.40 Greece may need a third bail-out after all, the EU's top economic official has admitted. Olli Rehn, European Commissioner for economic and monetary affairs, added that the country's lenders had other options to keep its aid programme going. Mr Rehn was quoted by Helsingin Sanomat newspaper as saying: We will also review Greece's programme's possible continuation and financing. The debt sustainability can be improved for instance by extending the loan periods. Wolfgang Schaeuble, the German finance minister, admitted yesterday that Greece will need a third bailout. 10.33 Economics editor Philip Aldrick has the full story on public finances here. 10.00 While a Treasury spokesman said: Strong tax receipts in July confirm that the economy is moving from rescue to recovery. There is still a long way to go as the UK recovers from the biggest economic crisis in living memory, and the Government is sticking to the economic plan that has already cut the deficit by a third and enabled the private sector to create over 1.3 million new jobs. 09.55 Some message management: