BUSINESS

The Australian share market made slight gains today after reaching a five month high in early trade.

Virgin Galactic's suborbital spaceship has made its first solo glide flight from Mojave Air and Space Port in California, as it continues to undergo very strict testing before it can carry tourists to space.

Australia's biggest sexual harassment case may be ended this week if both parties agree on the terms that plaintiff Kristy Fraser-Kirk and defendants David Jones company officers and former CEO Mark McInnes.

A shaft nearly half a mile long stands to be reinforced since it is the only way out now for 33 miners of the San Jose gold and copper mine in Chile. Rescue efforts and the events that led to the collapse of the mine roof should be noted as a learning opportunity for mining companies in Australia.

Virgin Blue Holdings Ltd (ASX: VBA) said on Monday that total loss incurred on its computerised reservation system crash last month could run from $15 million to $20 million.

Australian mining firm Indophil Resources NL jumped to the highest in 10 months in the ASX after one of the Philippines' s largest conglomerate San Miguel Corp. agreed a share placement worth $40-million in the company on October 8.

With the US unemployment rate steadying at more than nine percent and as investors fidget while anxiously waiting for the October board meeting minutes of the US Federal Reserve, the Australian bond market coursed through a flat start on Monday’s opening.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 11,000 Friday for the first time since May as a bleak jobs report boosted expectations that the Federal Reserve will move to stimulate economic growth.

US private sector payrolls (employment) rose by 64,000 in September, just short of expectations for a 74,000 gain in jobs.

Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) interest rates are running at an average of 4.732 percent since February 2008, the year when the global financial crisis (GFC) hit hard.

Iron ore mining giant Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (ASX: FMG) announced on Monday a new bank facility of up to $2.06 billion which the company said it would utilise to finance the expansion of its mining operations.

Giant retailer Woolworths Ltd (ASX: WOW) said on Monday that its $704 million off-market buy-back has been wrapped up as the company gave credit to encouraging shareholders support, which it maintained was instrumental in the successful transaction.

Weak share market sentiment for the nation's largest telecommunications provider becomes the impetus to retain customer confidence.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh is convinced that the opportunities carried by the November 22 public float of Queensland Rail National’s coal freight operations offer sufficient incentives that effectively eclipse the initiative’s alleged risks.

On the Sydney Futures Exchange this morning, the share price index futures contract was 22 points up at 4717 points. Trading is expected to be influenced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) housing finance data to be released later this morning.

Deputy Governor Ric Battelino of the Reserve Bank of Australia is optimistic that there would be turnaround in the property and real estate sectors as an encouraging shift of financing models will pave the way for future growth.

The relative strength of the Australian dollar against other currencies will not be bogged down by another round of interest rate increases. This was the assurance given central bank Deputy Governor Ric Battellino on Friday.

Profit takers ruled the day on Friday as the waited job figures from the Department of Labor clouded the prospect of quantitative easing by the Federal Reserves and weighed down on the record gains posted by the Australian dollar this week.

Local stocks pulled back slightly today, but still mirrored the weakness of Wall Street as the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 10 points, or 0.21 per cent, at 4,681.3 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index had eased 5.9 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 4,740.3 points.

After the market’s remarkable gains this week, the first following three weeks of losses, Australian shares retreated at the end of the week as the highs that marked the stocks performances finally settled on firmer levels and detracted from the week’s picked up points.

Australia's QR National has completed the acquisition of some A$3 billion worth of loans from 11 banks before its planned initial public offering, the company said in statement today.

Following the loss of its entire board to a plane crash in the Republic of Congo earlier this June, Africa-focused mining firm Sundance Resources Ltd (ASX: SDL) named current Sinosteel Midwest Corporation Ltd chief operating officer Giulio Casello as the company’s new managing director and chief executive.

Chevron Corp.'s liquefied natural gas output from its $42-billion project in northwest Australia output will partly be marketed in Southeast Asia, China, and India.

The waiting game on Wall Street trading spurred lower Australian exchanges on Friday noon as traders warmed the benched in anticipation of the US September employment date that was preceded by overnight weak showings from the US shares market.

Friday foreign exchange trading saw a weaker performance from the Australian dollar following its offshore surge of 99.18 earlier this week that was spurred by encouraging local job figures, which analyst said could finally budge the policy rate in an upward mode by November.

The employment surge this month also translates to a wake-up call for the Australian parliament to consider its policy on migration as the country now succumbs to higher demand for labour since 2006.

International giant mining firm BHP Billiton Ltd (ASX: BHP) said on Friday that it is set to remit up to $C90 billion or $A90.07 billion in royalties and taxes to the various government branches of Canada and bulk of the payment would be allocated to the government of Saskatchewan.

The market saw a firmer opening for the Australian bonds as analysts said investors were keen on waiting for the anticipated US employment figures where up to 5000 more jobs were to be added on non-farm sectors.

Canberra and Adelaide rental prices increased more than the 2.8 percent national average for capital cities last September.