BUSINESS

By Greg PeelNo one is much interested in buying the quantity of UF6 on offer in the US and while demand remains for U3O8 the only supply of note is in Europe and genuine buyers are looking for supply contracts a little longer dated than spot.

About half of companies in Sydney have changed their business hours due to the heavy traffic in the city. Over 30 per cent also extended delivery hours to meet deadlines.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 52 points or 0.4% while the S&P gained 0.8% to 1419 and the Nasdaq added 0.

BHP Billiton (ASX: BHP), the world's biggest miner, has declared on Monday a force majeure at its Bowen Basin coal mines in Australia due to the strikes and heavy rain.

By Greg PeelFew economists expected the RBA to cut its cash rate today and consensus was correct. The general feeling was that there may now be scope for the central bank to ease policy further from a domestic, rather than just a macro (Europe) standpoint, but that such a decision would be unlikely ...

Apple's success with the new iPad has many people speculating about the next Apple product to be released. In line with that, many people are now anticipating the release of Apple's iPhone 5 which is rumored to be released before the year ends.

Florida-based multi-strategy alternative investment manager, Stonehenge Asset Management, LLC is set to launch its third multi-strategy hedge fund, Stonehenge Diversified III, in April this year. The new fund will be domiciled in the U.S. and has appointed NAV Consulting Inc., as administrator.

Facebook has kept people waiting for months for its shares to finally go public. There are many others who have been trying to get a few shares in the secondary markets hoping for Facebook shares to pop out of the gate.

Now for a spot of considerable confusion from the two monthly surveys of China's huge manufacturing sector.

Yes, on the whole global financial markets have had a fabulous quarter with winners outweighing losers, but the question now for investors to consider is, can it go on?

US jobs, the Australian Reserve Bank's monthly interest rate decision, Chinese manufacturing and Japanese business sentiment will dominate a trading week shortened for the great Easter bun and chocolate festival.

Qantas Airways and Jetstar will increase their ticket prices because of their higher aviation fuel bill.

The local share market has started the new trading week, month and quarter on a positive note thanks to strong gains offshore on Friday night and better than expected Chinese manufacturing data. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) hit a high of 4460.7pts in early trade but has come off that slightly at lunchtime in the East and at 12.15pm AEST is firmer by 18.1pts or 0.4pct to 4438.1.

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.

Overall sentiment among investors in Australia has improved markedly since January. While short term caution still reigns, a majority is now anticipating 2012 will generate a positive return with equities likely to be higher on a six to twelve month horizon.

China is slowing gaining a foothold into the US and Canada oil and natural gas industry

State-owned Chinese oil company PetroChina announced this Thursday that it pumped 2.4 million barrels of oil per day last year - overtaking Exxon Mobil's 2.3 million bpd to be the world's largest publicly traded producer of oil.

Sony recently announced that users of Sony Xperia Play can now update their device's OS to the latest Android version which is Android 4.0 or better known as Android ICS (Ice Cream Sandwich).

When Thorsten Heins stepped in for departing co-founders Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis as Research in Motion's new CEO, he faced the uphill task of rejuvenating a company that has been on a steady downward slide. Now with RIM posting a dismal performance last quarter Heins announced a strategic overhaul and the possibility of a future sale of the company.

Immediately after launch of the new iPad, the iPhone Dev Team and other hackers have already announced they have they have discovered multiple ways to jailbreak the third generation iPad.

There'll be no more unpaid overtime work on Foxconn facilities in China in the coming months, according to Fair Labor Association (FLA), which has been commissioned by Apple to conduct audits on its partner Chinese assemblers.

Hardware chain Bunnings Warehouse announced on Friday that it would create 6,000 jobs in Australia over the next three years as part of its $1.5-billion expansion plan. That would involve the setting up of 85 new stores across the country which would also create more than 11,500 construction jobs.

Through its takeover of Anvil Mining, Minmetal Resources of China said on Friday that it would use its recently acquired assets to acquire mines in southern Africa.

By Aaron Tornell and Frank Westermann"Should the inflation outlook worsen, we would immediately take preventive steps".

By Peter Switzer, Switzer Super ReportAt a time when luminaries, such as the Future Fund's ex-chairman David Murray and ex-Treasury boss Ken Henry, have warned Aussie investors and super funds about holding too many shares, the question is, is this a good sign that we should be buying?To buy or...

Leighton Holdings has confirmed what more and more investors have been suspecting, that it is a wealth destroyer, not a creator and that if they are really brutal, its time as a listed company in Australia is now looking limited.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 19 points or 0.2% while the S&P closed down 0.2% to 1403 and the Nasdaq lost 0.

After reaching a 2012 high yesterday, the local share market pulled back a little today, following falls in offshore markets and due to a lack of guidance in the form of economic data. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) closed down 9.5pts or 0.2pct to 4422 while the S&P/ASX 200 Index (XJO) lost 5.6pts or 0.1pct to 4337.9.

Five million units of Samsung Galaxy Note have been shipped since its October debut in 2011, South Korea's Samsung said on Wednesday, marking a significant milestone for a device that the tech world greeted with mixed reactions.