BUSINESS

- TWE writes down US inventory- management still operating on blind faith- value lies only in corporate actionBy Greg PeelCelebrated British wine expert and TV personality Oz Clarke unwittingly launched Australia's highly successful export wine industry back in the 1980s, according to a recent ...

The phablet war is expected to further intensify in September amid reports that Taiwanese tech firm HTC will launch the One Max on the last month of the third quarter of 2013. The rumour came from Mobile Geeks, a German mobile site.

Local shares managed to rise modestly after economic news in China failed to surprise. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) edged higher by just 0.2 per cent, while the miners and consumer staples were two of the only losing sectors. Equities improved for the fifth consecutive day, making it the longest winning streak for the Australian market in two months.

Asiana Airlines is thinking of suing a San Francisco-based television network over irresponsible racist report

Asus and Google team proved to be successful with the Nexus 7. The market is anticipating their next collaboration as Google is set to release the second Nexus 7. Reports say, it will be called Nexus 7.2.

Banks in Australia have the highest concentration of residential mortgages than any other type of institution in the world, making them vulnerable to a possible house price correction according to the analysis of a leading credit market economist. Since houses in Australia are overvalued, many Australians consider housing affordability an issue. This is true especially for voters as housing ranks ahead of border security, broadband and education among the issues government must focus on.

Not much in the markets to draw our attention. Other than another pronouncement by the Fed that it will remain 'highly accommodative' for the so-called 'foreseeable future'.

Samsung seems intent on crushing every competitor out there. Apart from the company’s ongoing rivalry with Apple, it also now appears to be going out to challenge ASUS. Recent sighting of Samsung’s patent reveal the company is working on something similar to Asus Padfone.

The Australian market was subdued from morning to mid-day at the start of this week as investors become cautious while awaiting key data regarding China's economy. Some investors took profits after recent market gains, contributing to the fall.

That's the word from SRT president and CEO Ralph Gilles, who took to social media on the weekend to deny rumours that the 99-year-old car maker's days are numbered.

After a slim gain on US markets on Friday the Aussie market has started off slightly stronger. Then by 11.50am the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) only off 6pts.

Razer Blade has been leading the pack for gaming computers. Their range of laptops has gained an excellent part of the market. The release of the latest 2013 Razer Blade signals another venture for the company. Their latest draws comparison to Apple’s Macbook Pro with Retina display. With the features almost similar to one another, will Razer Blade give Apple a run for its money?

Apple announced last month at the 2013 Worldwide Developers Conference its plans on releasing another Macbook Air. The popular thin and light notebook will be running on Intel Haswell offering people the promise that the latest Macbook Air will have a great internal upgrade.

By Michael Lombardi, MBA for Profit ConfidentialDid the Federal Reserve just tell us it wants much higher inflation?In the most recent meeting minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), it said:"Most [members], however, now anticipated that the Committee would not sell agency mortgage-ba...

Apple fans would have to wait for sometime before the Retina Display arrives on the iPad Mini 2. Several reports indicated the Retina would likely have a full launch by 2014, at the earliest.

Despite weak sales, Canadian phone maker BlackBerry is determined to regain its number one position in the mobile phone market by planning the release of a new flagship device by the second half of 2013. The A10, featuring a 5-inch Super AMOLED display, dual-core processor and a separate graphic processor, will roll out by fall.

iQuant predicts limited upside for the week ending 19th July 2013. Short term indicators suggest the 4957 level will hold.

David Jones is parting ways with ModelCo after over ten years of union. The high-end department store chain and the cosmetics company are cutting off their once lucrative relationship, with each claiming they dumped the other one.

Local shares failed to hold onto the 0.9 per cent improvement recorded over the first hour of trade. However, the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) still managed to edge higher by 0.3 per cent; gaining for the fourth straight day; up around 2.9 per cent this week and flirting with the 5000.0 point mark for the first time since May.

Sony became the king of the hill in the world of electronics and technology. The Japanese company popularised the Sony clock radio, Walkman, Xperia and Sony Entertainment system but now in a vulnerable position on holding technical superiority worldwide. How did Samsung overtake one of the biggest known brands in the world?

The price of the Mazda 3 has been cut to $19,990 driveaway as Mazda Australia takes one final shot at the Toyota Corolla and the 2013 sales crown.

Verizon Communications Inc's contract with Apple Inc will apparently end this year as the deal becomes due. Verizon owes to Apple Inc an outstanding balance of almost $12 billion. A Verizon shortfall of $12 to $14 billion has an estimated value of $4-5 per share.

Is he Harvey Two-Face or Janus? The 'he' we're referring to is US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. He thoroughly confused markets after the US close on Wednesday. On the one hand, the Fed will not necessarily end QE when the US unemployment rate reaches 6.5%. On the other hand, interest rates will not rise even if the Fed 'tapers off' bond purchases.

Everything is looking good for the US of A! Or is it?

Completing a Kickstarter phase has helped Pebble generate more than 190,000 pre-orders. The Pebble team is responsible for the smart watch device hitting the market soon. With their Kickstarter phase finished, the team will now handle hundreds of thousands of shipments sent to their website.

The Australian sharemarket is improving for the fourth straight day. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is up 0.6 per cent, taking the gains this week to around 3.25 per cent. If the gains extend a little further this afternoon, this will end up being the best week since December 2011.

Something is brewing in apple as reports cite a sighting of a patent application under the company’s name at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The patent hints Apple’s working on a hybrid device with an external touchpad and built-in initial sensors. The new device offers people a wide range of motion functions – could this be Apple’s next best product?

Eight more cities in China want to limit the purchases of private cars in order to fight and manage the growing double whammy air pollution as well as traffic congestion menace in the country. The eight include Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Qingdao, Shenzhen, Shijiazhuang, Tianjin and Wuhan.

By David Fessler, Investment U Senior AnalystRon Baron isn't as famous as Warren Buffett or Peter Lynch, but the founder of Baron Capital Group deploys an investment philosophy that's not unlike the better-known investment giants: Start with in-depth research, ignore short-term market vola...