BUSINESS

While the growing attractiveness of tablets and phablets to consumers is anathema to manufacturers and retailers caught with a large inventory of laptops and desktops, it spells good news for potential buyers due to the significant cut in retail prices of these devices.

It seems that Toyota Motor Corp. is going through tough times as it will have to recall as many as 1.73 million vehicles globally as it has faced safety issues revolving around airbags. Other Japan's carmakers, including Honda Motor Co., Nissan Motor Co. and Mazda Motor Corp., have announced the same process as their models have also encountered similar problems. But that is not the last of problems for Toyota Motor Corp. as the carmaker is now at war against Ford Motor Co. over the title of ...

Surprisingly, the Bank of Korea did not decide to cut rates as it was widely expected. Neither the mounting political pressure nor increasing North Korean threats were enough to push the central bank of South Korea to change interest rates.

Infosys Ltd sadly let down markets and analysts with its forecast for the new fiscal year began April. Concurrently, the India's No. 2 services exporter released its data on the fourth quarter showing that its quarterly profit climbed about 3.4 percent. The news was not welcomed by markets as stock prices drastically dropped after the statement.

News from the British Retail Consortium bodes well for UK retail and designer merchandisers. Struggling in the past few months, the news of 3.7 percent growth in March is certainly promising. The same-store sales climbed by roughly 1.9 percent on a year-on-year basis, but still the figure is encouraging.

The Bank of Japan's pledge to invest in long-term bonds in the next two years is seen by many as a 'new phase of monetary easing.' This policy is in continuation of the Japanese Prime Minister's aim to reverse nearly 15 years of deflation.

Shares are slightly higher for fourth time this week. The Australian market has been improving modestly for most of the session, however has been flirting with negative territory over the past 30 minutes. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is up by 2.3 per cent since the start of the week. This makes it the best week on the local market since October 2012. Note that March was the worst month for the All Ords since May last year.

The U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has expressed concern the new avian influenza A H7N9 virus could spread outside China and potentially infiltrate the rest of the world.l

After much rumour explosion, Australian tech start-up We Are Hunted has confirmed it had been bought by social media giant Twitter, as the latter prepares to launch its music app this weekend.

Even if Hope Rinehart Welker withdrew in March the lawsuit she initiated seeking the removal of her mother, billionaire Gina Rinehart, from heading the family trust, her two siblings continued the case.

Australia's target to become the top liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter in the world could be at risk following reports that a major LNG venture would no longer push through because the project would no longer be financially viable.

By Rudi Filapek-Vandyck, Editor FNArenaI joined Twitter. Not because I am curious what this celebrity has to say about her kids, or to read that another one is waiting for a connecting flight, impatiently.

The Australian Dollar hit highs overnight that we have not seen since January after recovering from the 1.0500 level after a poorer than forecast March jobs number yesterday morning.

- Picture better than a year ago- US recovery slow, EU flat- Chinese growth stable- Japan may lose momentumBy Greg PeelIt is a truth now universally acknowledged that one of the most reliable ways to get a handle on the strength or otherwise of an economy is to regularly survey a sample of purchasin...

By Jason Jenkins, Investment U ResearchHave you heard the news? The ever-evolving world of science, scarce resources and population explosion will alter the world we live in by 2030.

Huawei quashed on Friday rumours that it would roll out the Ascend Mate Phablet or Ascend P2. Instead, it announced the launch of the Ascent G510, priced at £130.

Once again, confidence seedlings are taking root and sprouting. Overnight, weekly jobless claims reversed last week's awful print to beat estimates, falling by 18,000 claims to 342,000. This better-than-expected news was coupled with reports US retailers are experiencing stronger sales (ahead of the official numbers tonight), and allowed US retail shares to step onto the escalator.

In US economic news, new claims for unemployment insurance plunged by 42,000 to 346,000 in the latest week, well below forecasts centred on a result near 365,000. The March budget deficit was $107 billion, near forecasts of $112.5 billion. And export prices fell 0.4pct in March with import prices down 0.5pct.

By Greg PeelThe Dow rose 62 points, or 0.4%, while the S&P gained 0.4% to 1593 and the Nasdaq added 0.

South Korean tech giant Samsung announced on Thursday the release of two versions of a new phone line, the Galaxy Mega. The smartphone, which features one with a 6.3-inch touchscreen and other with a 5.8-inch display, will initially be sold in Europe in May.

Australian shares advanced today, following record highs recorded overnight on the US Dow Jones and S&P 500 Indices.

The Australian market has completely made up for yesterday's modest falls at lunch. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is up by around 0.5 per cent. Today was the first time since the start of April that the XAO cracked through he psychologically important 5000.0 point mark.

BHP Billiton (ASX: BHP) found a significant amount of copper at Succoth, an isolated outback in West Australia. The discovery is sufficient to open the area for more resource development.

The Australian Dollar has found renewed strength again hitting highs well above USD 1.0500 with the AUD trade-weighted index hitting its highest level in 28 years yesterday.

Risk assets extended their gains with US markets closing at fresh closing highs. There were several factors at play yesterday, but the move in risk was certainly triggered by some positive developments in Europe. The major European bourses traded sharply higher on hopes that Italy is closer to forming a government, and a successful Italian bond auction. The Fed minutes didn't have too much of an impact on sentiment, as investors feel the recent signs of strain in the US labour market will be ...

China's financial centre Shanghai has confirmed it will start its carbon emissions trading this coming month of June. Although no specific date was provided, it made sure the system will be up and running before the month ends.

Besides seizing deposits from account holders of the Popular Bank of Cyprus, Nicosia will also sell the bulk of its gold holdings as its contribution to the international bailout. The sale, which comes at a time that gold prices are down, aims to raise €400 million.

The global app market continued to expand at an impressive rate of 11 per cent for the first three months of 2013. Market analyst firm Canalys, in a new study released this week, said the top 4 app stores logged 13.4 billion downloads for the period.

In US economic news, the FOMC minutes from the March 19/20th meeting were released. Some FOMC members still believed that asset purchases should be tapered later in the year and stopped by year end. But of course the FOMC meeting took place in March before evidence of softening momentum in the US economy started to emerge. We continue to believe that the bond buying program will run into early 2014 at the very least.