There has been trading of a very large size in the butterfly put strategy on the Euribor options market over the last couple of sessions, Quentin Baker from Mako Financial Markets said Tuesday. He discusses the benefits of using a butterfly put strategy. Michael Browne from Sofaer Global Research joined the discussion.

Japanese cabinet ministers are putting pressure on the Bank of Japan urging it to respond to deflation. "We've had a very contractionary fiscal policy combined with a contractionary monetary policy and that's really beginning to show now," Lisa Fox from Japaninvest said Tuesday.

City Telecom is a broadband provider in Hong Kong after launching in 1992 as an international calling-card company. It now adds more than 40,000 new customers every 6 months. NiQ Lai, CFO of City Telecom, told CNBC their goal is to "become the largest IP service provider in Hong Kong by 2016."

UK water company Severn Trend posted a near 10% rise in underlying first-half profit Tuesday. The numbers were boosted by price rises which offset a continued fall in consumption. "It's another good set of results," CEO Tony Wray said, adding he has seen continued improvement on financial and customer service metrics.

It is of the utmost importance for UK businesses that the government deals with the public deficit in a timely manner, Whitbread CEO Alan Parker told CNBC Monday. Parker also spoke about the UK's general election, which is due next year.

UK banking group Lloyds priced its record $22.3 billion rights issue at 37 pence per share Tuesday. Michael Browne from Sofaer Global Research told CNBC it would draw a line under the bank's financial issues.

As the holiday season approaches, food is on everyone's mind. Soaring demand from China and India, along with other factors like natural disasters, biofuels and population growth, have boosted food prices. CNBC's Steve Sedgwick finds out whether soft commodities can whet an investor's appetite.

The euro could be due for a sharp drop against the dollar as the momentum behind the euro's recent strength has been stalling for some time, Roelof van den Akker from ING Wholesale Banking told CNBC Tuesday.

UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown is set to unveil his new growth plan at the annual CBI conference Monday. Sean Corrigan from Diapason Commodities Management has analysis.

The population in the Gulf region is predicted to continue to grow by a third in the next decade, according to a study from Economist Intelligence Unit. Strong demographic growth could lead to high economic growth, Jane Kinninmont from Economist Intelligence Unit told CNBC Monday.

US unemployment is likely to bottom out in the first quarter of 2010, according to the National Association for Business Economics Monday. Kit Juckes from ECU Group considers the predictions.

Exchange traded funds have enjoyed a rapid rise in popularity over the last 18 months as institutional investors place more importance on transparency and liquidity, according to a study by Barclays Global Investors. Deborah Fuhr from Barclays Global Investors spoke to CNBC about the findings Monday.

“The biggest program and the most effective program of all the government stimulus programs has been the Chinese one,” Sean Corrigan from Diapason Commodities Management told CNBC Monday. If the Chinese government slows down its stimulus measures, “it will knock a big heavy prop out from under this Western rally,” he added.

In his ranking of 40 markets for their strength, Robin Griffiths from Cazenove Capital told CNBC Monday “the Nikkei remains resolutely in 40th position as actually the one to avoid relative to the others.” The falling highs and lows in the Nikkei 225 “basically, technically says ‘avoid’”, he said, adding that India, China, and Brazil are the best investments.

“The tone for the US market, which will set the tone for the world equity markets, really remains quite positive,” Jim McCaughan, CEO of Principal Global Investors, told CNBC Monday. Overall there is “good value” in the market, he said, adding that he would be weary of investing in commodities.

Handmade Films is set to release its newest film Planet 51 Saturday, which will have to compete with the second installment of the Twilight film series. The UK film industry is very healthy, David Ravden, CEO of Handmade Group, told CNBC.

Turkey's largest mobile phone operator, Turkcell expects sales growth to rise by 10% next year as the introduction of 3G technology will push revenues higher. "We are projecting 10% growth improvement in our EBITA margin as well," Turkcell CEO Sureyya Ciliv said Friday.

The US-China trade relationship has reached a "bit of a stalemate," according to Fabien Pictet, chairman of FPP Asset Management Friday. He sees China's consumer strength proving sustainable. He has "a huge allocation to Taiwan and Korea."

The UK's Baroness Catherine Ashton was appointed as the European Union's new foreign minister late Thursday. "I hope that the Conservatives will welcome my appointment and be proud of me as a Briton and proud of what I can do in Europe," Ashton told CNBC.

"A lot of the profits of companies that we've seen are partly artificial because governments have put in so much liquidity in the system and produced all kinds of plans," Philippe Gijsels from Fortis Global Markets said Friday. "Maybe the earnings estimates for next year are probably too optimistic." He is "wary" on the markets.

The start of the week brings another pair of economic stimulus packages. This time it's the governments of India and Australia that are going to find ways of pushing money into their economies in an attempt to stave off the worst effects of slowing growth.