BUSINESS

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 5 points while the S&P rose 0.2% to 1349 and the Nasdaq gained 0.4%.We recall that while the private sector holders of Greek sovereign debt ? mostly European banks ? have agreed to take a haircut on their holdings via a debt restructure in which they will receive longer...

US mortgage applications rose in the past week with the mortgage market index lifting 7.5pct, underpinned by a 9.4pct increase in refinancing activity.

By Rudi Filapek-Vandyck, Editor FNArenaRisk assets have experienced a once-in-a-decade jumpstart into the new calendar year and increased liquidity (thank you ECB) plus improving economic data have been held responsible, finally providing the trigger to see a rapid return of risk appetite.

Just days after Facebook filed papers to go public, a large California pension fund is criticizing the social media giant for having an all-male board of directors.

By end February, residents and travellers plying the routes of China's municipality of Beijing will slowly get to experience inhaling cleaner air as the municipality government undertakes to introduce the first batch of liquefied natural gas (LNG) powered public buses.

Aussies are vacationing in droves overseas with New Zealand, the U.S. and Indonesia as their favourite destinations. Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics said that in 2011, Australians made 7.8 million international trips.

The soon-to-be merged groups already agreed on a name, Glencore Xstrata International, and executives have settled their corporate positions and roles but the planned marriage appeared to have overlooked an important detail - the expressed consent of independent investors.

BHP Billiton said on Wednesday that its latest half-year results deviated from previous performances, achieving only a net income of $9.9 billion for the last six months leading to the end of December 2011.

National Australia Bank (NAB) announced on Wednesday a strategic review of its U.S. business after the latter suffered from high levels of bad debts.

New research has revealed that workers and managers at the coal face have both the skills and experience to innovate and navigate through change, but are seldom provided the opportunity to do so.

Mining and rail equipment manufacturer Bradken is on track to meet earlier guidance for a 40% lift in full year profit after a 65% jump in first half earnings.

The local share market is trading slightly higher in the early session, on the back of modest gains on Wall Street overnight. At lunchtime in the East, the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) has added 7.6pts or 0.2pct to 4352.5.

As the market awaits ANZ's promised rate decision this Friday, NAB has vowed to beat its fellow majors on rates for the remainder of 2012, regardless of moves by the RBA.

Westpac has dismissed a Fairfax report insinuating that the bank was holding out on borrowers following last year’s rate cuts.

The Reserve Bank rendered moot much of the discussion surrounding bank funding costs this month when it chose to hold the cash rate steady.

The Reserve bank delivered the bad news to the banking sector yesterday, no rate cut and no chance to rebuild profit margins by hanging onto all or some of the widely expected 0.25% cut.

The Victorian Department of Primary Industries (DPI) this week announced its seizure of over 700,000 chickens to safeguard their welfare at six broiler farms located in Northern Victoria, South West Victoria and West Gippsland.

New research about snackfoods and consumers’ snack food choices, ‘Healthy Snackers’, was released in the U.S on 2 February, 2012 by Mintel Research.

While Australian Food News yesterday reported the strong performance of Coles fresh produce division, the quarterly figures reported by parent company Wesfarmers show that Coles Express non-fuel sales declined by 1.4 percent for the quarter compared with Woolworths positive 4.9 percent increase from the previous year.

The Reserve Bank left its cash rate steady at $4.25% yesterday for the very good reason that there was no need to cut it.

- Chinese steel demand should remain solid- Need for basic housing to drive demand- US steel market recording some price gains- Steel consumption in US likely to increase in coming monthsBy Chris ShawWhile there are growing concerns of a possible bursting of the Chinese property bubble, steel indust...

Rio Tinto has committed a further US$3.4 billion to the major expansion of its Pilbara iron ore operations in Western Australia.

US chain stores sales rose by 2.5pct in the latest week compared with a year ago according to Redbook Research. And in Germany industrial production dropped by 2.9pct in December, taking annual growth down to just 0.9pct, the lowest since late 2009.

The positive leads from U.S. markets may not impact much on local stocks especially the currency-sensitive ones with the rate pause initiated by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), analysts say.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 33 points or 0.3% while the S&P added 0.2% to 1347 and the Nasdaq rose 0.

Smartphones supplanted personal computers as the bestselling gadget in 2011, with analysts crediting both Apple and Samsung for creating 'hero' handsets that delivered record-breaking results.

Workers in BHP Billiton's (ASX: BHP) Queensland coal mines will hold a week-long strike likely to begin Friday to protest the latest enterprise agreement offer by the mining giant. The workers, members of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), are against some of the pay and work condition provisions of BHP's offer.

A quick preview of the key economic events for the upcoming week!

After a flat start, the Australian share market is posting modest gains at lunch, thanks to positive moves from telecommunication, industrial and energy stocks. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is up 11.3pts or 0.3pct to 4375.9.