BUSINESS

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed down 72 points or 0.6% while the S&P fell 1.3% to 1209 and the Nasdaq was Apple sauce, down 2.

http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/320193/000119312511273826/d244527dex991.htmhttp://online.wsj.com/article/AP26ba15082dab4ca48a7a71030b115715.htmlhttp://www.beatweek.com/news/9664-losing-touch-ios-5-on-iphone-ipad-signifies-death-of-ipod-branding/http://online.wsj.com/article/AP26ba15082dab4ca48a7a71030b115715.htmlhttp://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/12/us-apple-poll-idUSTRE79B6CI20111012

- Mixed quarterly production report for Oz Minerals- Copper solid, gold output lower- Earnings forecasts cut on lower gold guidance- Two brokers downgrade to Neutral ratingsBy Chris ShawSeptember quarter production from Oz Minerals ((OZL)) was mixed, with copper output largely as expected but gold p...

Sony finally confirmed that its next generation handheld the PlayStation Vita will be coming to gamers in the U.S., Europe, Canada and Australia on February 22, 2012.

Hewlett Packard has released an update to its HP TouchPad tablet proving that there's some life left in the now outmoded tablet line.

Dell Inc. will be a company to provide services and solutions to businesses.

The volatility continued for investors today, with the local stock market attempting to recover some of yesterday's losses. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) rose 25.3pts or 0.6pct to 4274.8, notching up its second win of the week. Sentiment was boosted by a newspaper report from the UK's The Guardian which suggested France and Germany have agreed to increase the size of the European stability fund to two trillion Euros.

The labor problems plaguing Qantas Airways for months now have given competitor Virgin Australia a wide opening to expand its market share.

Recent labor market research shows Australia’s $427-billion worth of resource projects will struggle to survive the crippling labour and skills shortage. Resource industry employer group AMMA says only a united front from all tiers of government can alleviate the imminent threat to many prospective workplaces.

Analysts and federal authorities remained optimistic on China's fiscal strength even as the world's second-largest economy slowed down in the third quarter.

China Steel has been reportedly mulling of buying stakes in various overseas coal and iron ore mines, with a $2.5 billion budget to spend, over the next four years.

Households are steadily gaining confidence in their financial well-being, with 28 per cent of Australians prepared to start spending again over the festive season, following a period of frugality and personal debt reduction – according to the latest ING Direct Financial Well-being Index.

After finalizing some fresh debt from banks and U.S. private investors, CSL Limited, the world's second biggest blood products maker, said it plans to buy back A$900 million of its shares.

The Pharmacy Guild of Australia (PGA) is again in hot water over another apparent shady deal. This time it involves alleged kickbacks paid by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer to chemists.

Virgin Australia announced on Wednesday it would provide additional capacity over the coming months to meet market requirements and to minimize the impact of ongoing Qantas industrial action on the Australian travel and tourism industry.

Rio Tinto announced on Wednesday that it would advance the first shipment of ore from its Simandou project in Guinea to mid-2015. The earlier shipment date is because of accelerated development resulting from approval of another $211 million for continued studies and $1.117 billion funding commitment for early works and procurement of long-lead items.

Buoyed by strong demand and low interest rates, Canadian house prices continue to rise. In the year to end-June 2011, the national house price index rose by 4.52% (1.37% inflation-adjusted), according to Teranet-National Bank of Canada.

So what can the Reserve Bank do as it looks to the next board meeting on Melbourne Cup day and assesses the country's economic position and whether to cut interest rates?

Is the long tipped hard landing for China's economy about to happen?

After a decade, Kimberley's cotton growers are harvesting cotton once more. The ABC reported around 800 hectares of GM cotton will be balled up by a Queensland contract harvester next month.

The labor row between Qantas engineers and management turned for the worse after the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA) filed a complaint with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) on Wednesday.

After some legal setbacks, Samsung Electronics finally won some of its legal battles against Apple. The victory was handed by U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh who dismissed on Tuesday some of the antitrust claims by Apple against the South Korean firm.

Defying the softening market demand for iron ore, BHP Billiton announced on Wednesday a 24 percent hike on its iron ore output while admitting at the same time that the company’s copper production has retreated significantly in the face of a protracted labor problem.

The Australian sharemarket is gaining for the second time this week, with the All Ordinaries index up 0.8 pct or 34.5 pts to 4284.00. Almost all sectors are up with the exception of the gold space which is tracking lower due to weaker gold prices overnight.

Angry Birds maker Rovio revealed at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco on Tuesday that the popular video game will add a new bird while preparations for a movie version is underway.

Web browser maker Opera Software has developed a new mobile web browser that can load pages faster on devices running on the Android operating system.

- JP Morgan revises oil price expectations- Solid fundamentals to support tin prices- China under-reporting steel production- Iron ore price correction underwayBy Chris ShawWhile the global economic outlook worsens and even with Libya expected to make a rapid return to oil production, JP Morgan cont...

- Beach Energy has announced shale reserves of 300tcf in the Cooper- Broker interest is piqued, but not obsessive- Prices, costs, technology and the long timeframe are all hurdlesBy Greg PeelThree hundred trillion cubic feet.

Hungry Jack’s is replacing its slogan from ‘The Burgers are Better Hungry Jack’s’ to ‘Hungry Jack’s makes it better’ as the fast-food giant aims to expands its menu and increase its health focus.