UK - Financial markets around the world tumbled on Wednesday as a slew of ominous data suggested economies are ­being pushed to the brink of recession by increasing trade tensions. One of the most reliable recession signals flashed red at the same time as Germany’s economy contracted, ­eurozone growth was slashed in half and Chinese factories suffered a shock setback. The US Treasury yield curve – one of the most closely watched harbingers of doom in bond markets – inverted for the first time since the run-up to the ­financial crisis. The Treasury yield curve – the difference in the returns of two-year and 10-year US government bonds – has a formidable track record of predicting US recessions…