Week in pictures

Representatives of Silvio Berlusconi's government this week met trade union leaders in a bid to secure their backing for the take-off of a new Italian flag-carrier airline, salvaged from the wreckage of Alitalia Photograph: Vincenzo Pinto/AFP

London's already-bruised financial sector was braced for another round of job cuts after German bank Commerzbank agreed to buy smaller rival Dresdner Bank. The deal will lead to 2,500 job losses outside Germany, with at least half expected in the UK Photograph: Russell Boyce/Reuters

Investors gave a severe thumbs down to Commerzbank's €9.8bn (£8bn) takeover of Dresdner, sending its shares down more than 10% Photograph: Imago/Newscast

The Halifax announced the biggest one-month jump in house prices in more than six years today as fresh evidence emerged of the impact of record low interest rates on the property market. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty

Sterling tumbled to a record low against the euro and to its weakest level against the dollar for over two years after Alistair Darling's weekend comments about the economy facing its biggest challenge for 60 years Photograph: David Levene/Guardian

Ben Verwaayen, the man who turned around British Telecom, has been charged with revitalising the struggling French telecoms company Alcatel-Lucent Photograph: Richard Harding/UPPA

Electricals retailer DSG International posted a sharp fall in sales, led by a 12% decline at its PC World chain Photograph: Chris Radburn/PA

Cost-conscious companies and consumers have boosted sales at Whitbread's Premier Inn budget hotels and Beefeater and Brewers Fayre pub restaurants Photograph: David Devins/Newscast

Wall Street stocks suffered their sharpest fall for two months as dismal US employment figures and rumours of hedge fund failures cast a cloud of gloom over trading floors Photograph: Vincent Thian/AP

The Bank of England left interest rates on hold at 5% for the fifth month running in the face of growing evidence that the economy is rapidly heading into recession Photograph: Luke MacGregor/Reuters