Wednesday 21.15 BST: Ben Bernanke’s press conference gave a further lift to asset prices, with US stocks at a fresh post-crisis high and gold at a new record, even as the US Federal Reserve said it would end its $600bn “QE2” quantitative easing programme.

The Fed held rates steady at 0 to 0.25 per cent but tweaked its statement on growth, reducing its outlook from a “firmer footing” for the recovery to a “moderate” pace of growth. It also said inflationary pressures were “subdued” and labelled pressures from energy and other commodities as “transitory”.

Gold, which many investors see as hedge to future inflation, saw a boost all the way to $1,529 an ounce, another all-time nominal high. Silver jumped 5.5 per cent, rebounding from a slip earlier this week, to $47.99 an ounce, nearing its own nominal record of $50.