BUSINESS

Despite of the bid deadline late yesterday, the management of Rio Tinto is still in negotiation with one of the major Riversdale Mining shareholders to assure a majority stake in the Africa-focused mining company.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed down 22 points or 0.2% while the S&P lost 0.3% and the Nasdaq dropped 0.5%.Wall Street rose to be up around 50 points in the Dow early in the session and remained positive until right at the death, when a large swathe of “sell on close” orders were taken. Talk on the floor last night was not of the movement of the indices however, but of the almost non-existe...

South Australia's monthly retail spending has lagged behind national spending since May last year, official figures show.

What's moving the currency market? Here's the top headline from ForexCT's Market Insight Report delivered to you by the International Business Times AU.

US consumer spending rose by 0.7pct in February after an upwardly revised 0.3pct gain in January.

Gaming console giant Nintendo has announced the launch of several new gaming applications which aims to provide entertainment for players of all ages. The company invites players of any to check out new demo versions of games for the WiiWare service - one offering competitive darts challenges, the other giving preschoolers a fun way to learn by interacting with baby animals.

Online shopping giant eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) has announced completion of a plan to acquire GSI Commerce (NASDAQ: GSIC), a leading provider of ecommerce and interactive marketing services, for $29.25 a share, or total consideration of approximately $2.4 billion. The acquisition, which will be financed with cash and debt, is expected to close in the third quarter of 2011.

Ratings agency, Fitch Ratings says it does does not expect eBay Inc.'s (eBay) proposed acquisition of GSI Commerce, Inc. (GSI) to have an impact on eBay's ratings.

By J SaetteleThe uptrend remains intact as long as price is above US$97.00. Short term support is from US$100.70-102.99 (Fibonacci) and probably strongest near the lower end of that range (reinforced by pivot low). Favor the upside (again, against 9700) towards the longer term channel resistance and a measured objective of US$117.38.The views expressed are not FNArena's (see our disclaimer).For re...

Despite some optimism that Japan would bounce back quickly, there are now signs the recovery will take longer and the impact on the economy will be greater than expected.All those confident forecasts and comparisons with the March 11 quake and tsunami with the 1995 quake in Kobe are starting to look a bit thin.A 6.1 magnitude quake yesterday saw a brief tsunami alert off the northeast coast of Jap...

Good news for the minority shareholders in Village Roadshow (VRL), with the company taking the money and running from Southern Cross Media's bid for Austereo and using the cash to make a capital return of $1 a share.As well the company says a review of costs has found savings of $20 million.But while minorities might cheer (especially with the share jumping 15% yesterday to $4.00, a new 52 we...

Good news for the minority shareholders in Village Roadshow (VRL), with the company taking the money and running from Southern Cross Media's bid for Austereo and using the cash to make a capital return of $1 a share.As well the company says a review of costs has found savings of $20 million.But while minorities might cheer (especially with the share jumping 15% yesterday to $4.00, a new 52 we...

The Australian Dollar traded to a post float high of 1.0294 offshore on Friday as equity markets remained firm.

If you are one of those people who are in pressing financial situations and need money fast, here is a list of companies that can provide you payday loans or cash in no time.

- MACA interim result solid, reports stockbroker DJ Carmichael - New contract, work-in-hand offers upside to forecasts - DJ Carmichael rates MACA as a Buy By Chris ShawMining and construction services group MACA Limited ((MLD)) reported in late February what DJ Carmichael viewed as a strong interim result. Net profit rose 121% on the previous corresponding period to $15.7 million, achieved on a 14...

Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) falls short of 50 percent votes it needs later today in order to acquire Riversdale Mining, a coal producer focus on South Africa.

Wesfarmers stoop up to its decision to apply considerable discounts to liquor and dairy products. Coles' parent company started engaging in aggressive price discounting as part of its efforts to rebuild the reputation of the retailing giant.

Australian logistics firm Brambles Ltd has announced that it has received final approval from the United States authorities to proceed with its A$1.24-billion acquisition of plastic container pooling service IFCO Systems NV.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) anticipates a substantial increase in foreign investments in Australia as the mining boom persists, says The Australian newspaper. Based on the report, foreign capital is expected to rise by as much as $120 billion.

(This story was originally published on Wednesday, 23rd March 2011. It has now been re-published to make it available to non-paying members at FNArena and readers elsewhere).- Does David Jones always beat Rio Tinto?- There are plenty of David Joneses around, here's another one- Melbourne investor meetings a success, whereto now?(The latter question is as to where you can play a leading role) By Ru...

National Australia Bank (ASX: NAB) says NAB Private Wealth has appointed two of Australia’s top private bankers from international private banks, expanding its capabilities in Australia.

The Australian Dollar has soared to fresh multi-decade highs above 1.0280 at the end of last week, and with no apparent catalyst to the move it reconfirms the current bullish momentum behind the commodity currency as market orders push the currency pair towards 103 cents.

The US economy grew more quickly than previously thought with the fourth quarter annualised GDP result upgraded from 2.8pt to 3.1pct.

FNArena has added another video to its Investors Education section on the website. In this "ATW Strategic Prep Session for March 21, 2011" ATW founder and market trader Jerry Simmons touches upon the following subjects:- A comprehensive analysis of the copper market reveals it is at a potential key turning point- Key price levels are identified to provide confirmation of continuation moves in the ...

Remember a couple of weeks ago when the Australian dollar dipped under parity with the greenback and fell well under 98 USc?We saw a plethora of gloomsters emerge warning that the dollar could fall even further, how this was a sign of things to come and how the currency would face uncertain times thanks to the rising tide of dangers from the Middle East and North Africa, the housing bubble and the...

A busy week here and offshore for economic data, while it will also see what has been a mixed first quarter end on Thursday (and the March half year for a number of local companies).American unemployment, Australian building approvals and retail sales for February and the balance date for three of our big four banks on March 31, will dominate the week.As well the markets look like continuing to ig...

By Marc Lichtenfeld , Senior Analyst Thursday, March 24, 2011: Issue #1476I recently received an e-mail from a reader in his fifties who plans to retire in four years. He told me he’s just getting started in investing and wanted some ideas for “rapid growth.” Yikes! Hopefully, he’s got a large 401K, a pension, or an inheritance. Four years isn’t enough time to get you...

U.S. stocks gained Thursday as investors largely looked past the deepening political crisis in Portugal to focus on encouraging earnings from technology companies and U.S. jobs data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 89 points, or 0.7%, to 12175 in late afternoon trading, led by a 2.3% rise in Home Depot. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.4% to 2736. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index added 0.9% to 1310, lifted by its consumer discretionary and technology sectors. Boosting technology stock...

By Greg PeelThe Dow rose 84 points or 0.7% while the S&P gained 0.9% to 1309 and the Nasdaq added 1.4%.What just happened? Nothing apparently. Wall Street has now completely discounted the Japanese earthquake, tsunami and nuclear scare in taking the S&P back over the psychological 1300 mark and back above the point at which it fell on the March 11 earthquake news. Next stop the February high marke...