BUSINESS

In the US, the NFIB business optimism index rose from 95.3 to 96.1 in October. And chain store sales were up 3.8% in the latest week compared with a year earlier according to Redbook, down from 3.9% in the previous week.

Australian shares ended in the red for the second day with the ASX 200 slipping by 0.1 per cent. Despite losses of 0.5 per cent so far this week the ASX 200 still remains above the key 5500 pt level.

Local shares started the second session of the week much like the first, in reverse. The path of the ASX 200 to the session lows was orderly and took the first hour at which point the market was down by 16 points. As lunch approached there appeared to be little evidence that buyers were keen to make any impression and the index loitered within sight of the worst levels of the morning. The lead offered by US share markets didn't translate to sentiment at the open locally. The Dow Jones and the...

Canada is selling one of its properties in Rome.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) recently concluded the Ministerial Meeting in Beijing. The main aim of the group is to remove barriers to trade.

There is little in the way of macro news at the moment and this is allowing the markets to run; the US markets, in particular, are gunning for any reason to head higher.

In the US, consumer credit rose by US$15.92 billion in September, above forecasts tipping a US$15.1bn gain. The Employment Trends index rose from 121.7 to 123.09 in October.

A lady passenger almost lost her head in last week's emergency landing by Air Canada flight 8481.

Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday are slowly merging into one epic event for stores and its customers who are all excited for the upcoming big sale.

Australian shares have kicked off the trading week a little softer; wiping out all of last week's improvements. The ASX 200 index fell by 0.5 per cent or 31pts to 5518.4.

Sellers have applied their weight to the share market on Monday, discriminating little between the various sectors. Mining and energy stocks however have escaped the attention that has seen financials lead the way lower after Westpac (WBC) went ex-dividend, shedding more than 3.5% in the process. The softer tone is a reflection of a similar experience to that of US stocks on Friday after jobs data missed expectations. Figures from The US Bureau of Labour Statistics showed that non-farm payrolls ...

A new report that looked into the downing of Malaysia Airlines MH17 said that despite its denials, it was indeed Russia that has provided the missile launcher to the Ukraine separatist rebels.

Apple Inc stock has reached $110.30 per share last week as investor excitement builds for the spring release of Apple Watch.

I remain tepid about November trade, having seen the US markets returning to record all-time highs and more talk on the Street is that we're heading for 8% to 10% gains over the next 12 months.

When mining giant Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) holds it stockholders annual meeting in February 2015, the firm is hopeful it could bring a smile to shareholders on hearing news of higher dividends when it announced full-year results. The confidence comes from higher revenue due to sticking to plans to boost output despite lower iron ore prices in the international market.

The $1 billion agreement between China and Australia that would result in the export of 1 million cattle to the Asian giant would also boost the Aussie economy by $1.8 billion. The deal is expected to be officially finalised on Monday by Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC Summit hosted by Beijing.

In the US, non-farm payrolls (employment) rose by 214,000 in October, short of forecasts tipping a 231,000 gain. Unemployment fell to a 6-year low of 5.8%. Average earnings rose by 0.1%. The labour force participation rate rose from 62.7% to 62.8%.

Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea may soon be seeing robots working to combat the dreaded Ebola in their countries.

Both retailers and consumers are excited about the upcoming Black Friday 2014, which offer big discounts for customers and guarantee massive profits for retail stores.

The Australian sharemarket has recovered yesterday's losses, with all ten sectors finishing firmer. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) gained 0.78 per cent or 42 points to 5,522, while the S&P/ASX 200 Index (XJO) climbed 0.78 per cent or 43 points to 5,549. The market was boosted by strong gains in the materials and energy sectors and even the financial sector managed to shrug off early losses to finish the day in positive territory. Over the course of the week the ASX 200 has gained 0.4%, markin...

Cruise ships could be taking in more passengers these days, no thanks to the terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq.

Local shares started the last session of the week on the front foot following encouraging gains for US and European markets over night. The ASX opened with a small loss, down 6 points before trading with a gain of 33 points at the best levels of the morning. The early optimism reflected gains seen overseas which were driven by the hope of more central bank led action to promote economic growth. The European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said the bank's governing council was unanimous in...

The United Nations is calling for more help to fight the Ebola outbreak right in the region where it started.

Alex LaBeouf who has been working at Target in Dallas, Texas for about three months could be appearing on TV or in the movies soon.

It was a busy night for global markets, as investors digested a raft of releases and events from Europe and the US. In Europe, the BoE and ECB both kept policy unchanged. However, the latter's press conference drew significant attention, as the central bank said it expects its balance sheet to move towards 2012 levels. Essentially, this implies the balance sheet is set to increase by around a trillion euros. At the same time, the ECB reinforced its commitment to using other unconventional pol...

Typhoon Nuri could put parts of the United States experiencing single digit temperatures in the coming days.

In the US, jobless claim fell by 10,000 to 278,000 last week. The Labour Department also reported that hourly compensation increased at a 2.3 per cent rate in the September quarter. Labour productivity rose at a 0.3 per cent rate in the September quarter after a decline of 0.5 per cent in the June quarter.

Australia has been negotiating for 10 years with China to finalise the one-billion cattle deal.

The local sharemarket continued its downward slide this afternoon, closing firmly in the red. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) lost 0.32 per cent or 17pts to 5,475, while the S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.29 per cent or 16 pts to 5,501. The market was weighed down by falls in the mining and financial sectors. Volumes saw 1.9 billion shares exchanged worth $5.3 billion. 386 stocks ended higher, 571 closed lower and 321 were unchanged.