Business week in pictures

The Japan earthquake rocked the financial markets, knocking the Nikkei index down sharply on Monday. The Nikkei 225 plummeted 14.4% at one stage, later closing 10.6% lower at 8605, taking its two-day loss to just over 16%. This is its biggest two-day fall since the 1987 global stock market crash Photograph: Mario Tama/Getty Images

But the Japanese stock market staged a rally on Wednesday, closing higher as the emergency operation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant continued Photograph: Diego Azubel/EPA

Global investors tried to assess the impact of the disaster on various parts of the economy. Prices rose for NAND flash chips, essential for smartphones and tablet computers. Household names such as Panasonic, Hitachi and Toshiba have made Japan a key player in electronic components, with the country supplying about a fifth of global semiconductors and 40% of flash memory chips Photograph: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The price of computers, mobile phones and DVDs could rise across the world due to shortage of electronic components from disaster-hit Japan, experts warn Photograph: Everett Kennedy Brown/EPA

In what dealers described as 'white-knuckle' trading on the foreign exchange markets, the yen rocketed to a record high against the dollar on the back of expectations that Japanese investors will have to repatriate cash to cover the costs of the disaster. Later the G7 nations agreed to co-ordinate intervention ina bid to bring the yen down Photograph: ChinaFotoPress/Getty Images

A senior executive at Honda has reassured workers at its Swindon plant that the company's UK operations are 'safe' despite the disruption caused by the earthquake in Japan. Honda has stopped production of cars and motorcycles at its five major factories in Japan for a week, while the impact of the earthquake is assessed Photograph: Kieran Doherty/Reuters

In UK news, the unemployment rose to a 17-year high Photograph: Kerim Okten/EPA

Public sector workers are being laid off much faster than officials forecast, with more than 100,000 jobs being lost over the past 12 months. Figures from the Office for National Statistics showed a decline of 111,000 in 'general government' workers Photograph: Linda Nylind for the Guardian

Tesco's UK chief executive, Richard Brasher, has claimed that the 'inexorable rise of fuel prices', as well as other rising household costs, add up to a 5% rise in income tax for poorer families Photograph: Bruno Vincent/Getty Images

Greece said it would waive landing, takeoff and stopover fees for all aircraft using the nation's airports in a move aimed at reinvigorating the cash-strapped country's tourism industry. The waiver will apply from April until the end of the year at all airports except Athens Photograph: Petros Giannakouris/AP

The property tycoons behind London's most lavish residential development are £62m better off after fresh details emerged of sales at One Hyde Park. The Candy brothers, Nick and Christian, and their backers have pocketed the sum after selling one sixth floor property for £22m, and one on the second floor for £21.6m. A third has sold for £14.85m while another buyer seems to have secured a bargain, paying just £3.8m for a second floor apartment in the Knightsbridge complex Photograph: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Champagne sales bounced back in the UK last year after two years when the industry was hammered by recession. Drinkers splashed out on their favourite fizz as supermarket own-brand promotions kept sales afloat, despite strong competition from cheaper sparkling wines from Spain and Italy Photograph: Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images

BMW expects sales to hit a record high this year, despite rising oil and raw material costs, the repercussions of Japan's disastrous earthquake and the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East Photograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images

Disney's plans for a 3D remake of the Beatles' 1968 film Yellow Submarine have faltered. The new film was being developed by Robert Zemeckis, the Oscar-winning director of Forrest Gump, Back to the Future and Cast Away, and was to use the 16 Beatles songs and recordings from the original animated film. But Disney has sunk the film after one of its most disastrous weekends in recent years. Mars Needs Moms, a $150m, 3D animated film produced by Zemeckis, took only $6.9m (£4.3m) at US cinemas
Photograph: Apple Corps/Subafilms Ltd/AP