BUSINESS

Tokyo has a new governor, Yoichi Masuzoe. And with his election, observers believed it won't be long before some, if not all, of Japan's idling nuclear power plants get to restart again.

Analysts say that Apple Inc (NASDAQ AAPL) is cheap and it is the best time to own the stock now

Fishing communities near the Earth's equator, particularly those in Southeast Asia, are at risk of losing their source of food and livelihood. An Australian-led study has found that the burgeoning climate change will make ocean waters to go warmer, pushing marine species to seek comfortable conditions elsewhere.

The Australian sharemarket is modestly higher at lunch, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) up 0.4 per cent, taking the gains since last Thursday to 4 per cent. U.S. stocks jumped by 1.2 per cent (only the second time this calendar year the DOW has gained in excess of 1 per cent). U.S. Fed chief Janet Yellen delivered her first testimony before congress and calmed the market. She didn't mince her words and seemed set to continue with the tapering while expressing her concerns relating to the ...

Janet Yellen's maiden testimony to House Financial Services Committee may well have come from her predecessor.

In testimony to the US House of Representatives, US Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen, said that she strongly supports the current policy strategy and expects a ´´great deal of continuity´´. Yellen also noted that recovery in the labour market is far from complete.

Billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn has decided to drop his $50 billion stock buyback proposal to Apple Inc after respected proxy adviser Institutional Shareholder Services Inc (ISS) criticised his attempts of micromanagement. Apple Inc's CEO has announced in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that the company has recently repurchased $14 billion of its stocks.

The ASX 200 completed its fourth consecutive day of gains on Tuesday. Much like yesterday, the index started the trade at the lows and ended around close to the best levels of the session. The ASX was shut down for 30 minutes this afternoon as a result of market data related issues. Volumes remained at healthy levels with $4.3 billion changing hands.

Despite a slightly weaker start this morning, the Australian sharmarket is managing to maintain some modest gains at lunch. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is up 0.4 per cent and has cracked through 5250.0pts.Our second largest trading partner; Japan is closed today for a holiday1.

Carl Icahn backed out from the Apple Inc $50 billion stock, but what’s the real deal?

A social media campaign for the benefit of SPC ARDMONA reaches 14.6 million for the benefit of SPC ARDMONA

North Korea's been reported to be potentially holding the world's largest deposit of rare earth minerals at 216 million tonnes, which if properly managed and funneled could make the world's most isolated regime and its people rich and powerful.

Two vending machines selling crack pipes, the first of its kind, have been launched in Vancouver. The Drug Users' Resource Centre for the Portland Hotel Society, the non-profit group that help pave its launch, said it will help curb the spread of HIV and other communicable diseases among its users.

Early this morning Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew announced he will have to take extraordinary measures to avoid hitting the debt ceiling as the February 12 deadline approaches.

European shares were mixed on Monday. The new head of the US Federal Reserve, Janet Yellen, is to deliver her first testimony to the House of Representatives on Tuesday and the Senate on Thursday. The FTSEurofirst 300 index rose by 0.1% with the UK FTSE up by 0.3% while the German Dax was lower by 0.1%. Mining shares were also mixed in London trade with BHP Billiton shares up by 0.6% while Rio Tinto lost 0.7%.

Large bricks-and-mortar retail shops in Australia would likely be both happy and sad with more foreign fashion brands opening stores in the Land Down Under.

Australia's car manufacturing would die by 2017, while about 50,000 workers from the supporting industry would become jobless. That would be on top of 2,500 Toyota employees also joining the ranks of the unemployed in less than four years from now.

The Australian share market had a solid start to the trading week, on the back of solid gains on Wall Street on Friday night.

Apple Inc has bought back $14 billion of its stocks in the past two weeks. The recent move has increased Apple's total stock buyback to $40 billion shares in a span of 12 months. Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, remarked in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that it was a record-breaking buyback for a company in a similar period. He said Apple will reveal more updates on its stock buyback by March or April 2014.

"The Vampire Diaries" (TVD) star Ian Somerhalder tweeted about fashion retailer Lands' End banning the sale of items with Angora fur after seeing a PETA video of Angora fur farm cruelty. Somerhalder is a certified animal lover and the co-founder of the Ian Somerhalder Foundation (ISF) which was started to help animals, the environment and people as well as educate and empower mankind to make compassionate and sustainable choices for the planet earth and its inhabitants.

The Australian sharemarket is improving for the third straight day, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) up by 0.7 per cent. The miners are the best performers while weakness from the property trusts, utilities and consumer staple businesses are keeping a cap on the gains.

Headline data has once again blocked out the true underlying state of play.

In US economic news, non-farm payrolls rose by 113,000 in January, short of forecasts for a gain of 185,000. But private payrolls rose by 142,000 and the unemployment rate fell to a five-year low of 6.6%. Average earnings rose by 0.2% as expected. Consumer credit rose by US$18.76 billion in December, above forecasts for a gain of US$12 billion.

Apple Inc.'s CEO Tim Cook has revealed Apple will introduce products in new categories in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. Like in any interview, he avoided getting into the specifics but only hinted that Apple is working on "really great stuff."

The Australian share market rallied for a second session today, adding 0.7 per cent by close after a better than expected jobless claims report released in the US overnight.

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), the UN's weather agency, has confirmed that the year 2013 had indeed been the world's sixth hottest year since record keeping began in 1850.

Apple removes Bitcoin programme Blockchain from App Store, while Malwarebytes accepts Bitcoin as virtual currency.

A small telecommunications company in New Zealand is now accepting Bitcoin as an alternative mode of payment. Auckland-based 2Talk announced it will be the first company in the local telecommunications industry to allow the digital currency as payment.

Authorities from the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee has warned all international airlines to take necessary precautions, following reports that terrorist groups have concocted explosives disguised as toothpaste bombs on flights bound for Russia.