US economy adds far fewer jobs than expected; UK consumer groups warn on fuel poverty – as it happened

• Key US job report disappoints: economy added just 194,000 jobs
• National Energy Action warns up to 1.5m more households could be plunged into fuel poverty next spring
• Analysts doubt Russia can pump more gas to Europe
• Ofgem CEO: price cap to rise sharply in April, promises review
• Wholesale gas prices rise again but remain below record highs
• Closing summary

Yesterday, the energy regulator, Ofgem, admitted that it needs to pay more attention to the potentially risky business models of small suppliers, amid a wave of company failures caused by whipsawing gas prices.

Speaking at an annual conference held by the trade body Energy UK, Ofgem's chief executive, Jonathan Brearley, said it was likely that more suppliers would fail, adding to the 12 that have gone under this year.

We will need to regulate the energy market differently. When gas prices hit, many suppliers simply couldn't cope with such a sharp, sustained shock.