BUSINESS

In the US, durable goods orders fell by 1.1% in September with factory orders down by 0.6%, in line with forecasts. The trade deficit widened from US$40.1 billion to US$43.03 billion in September (forecast US$40 billion). The ISM New York index rose from 654.8 to 657.2 in October. And chain store sales were up 3.9% on a year ago in the latest week, down from 4.4% in the previous week.

The One World Trade Center opens after 13 years since 9/11.

The Australian sharemarket has ended the session firmer, after trading fairly flat for most of the day. Volumes were light with Victoria celebrating the Melbourne Cup public holiday. The S&P/ASX 200 climbed 13pts or 0.20 per cent to 5,519.

A memorial erected in Russia in honour of the late Apple founder Steve Jobs was brought down because Tim Cook outed himself as gay.

After a modest setback on Monday, the Australian share market has spent the early part of Melbourne Cup day 2014 moving higher in a restrained fashion. The flat start for the local market was a reasonable result in the face of weaker equity markets in the US and Europe. US investors were encouraged by figures showing the US ISM manufacturing index rose from 56.6 to 59.0 in October, above forecasts for a result near 56.2. European shares fell on Monday with investors disappointed by purchasing ma...

Global markets were mixed, with a predominantly risk off tone driven by a disappointing manufacturing PMI print out of China. Fed member Fisher was also on the wires suggesting he is concerned the Fed will be too late to raise rates and he was not too worried about a slight undershoot in inflation. This, along with slightly better US manufacturing data, contributed to the downward bias in equities. Europe was the hardest hit as peripheral bond yields rose, sending EUR/USD below $1.2500. This saw...

An online petition on change.org initiated by three female British students to pressure Victoria's Secret, which allegedly promotes negative body image, has gathered so far 16,000 signatures.

The four adult children of Gina Rinehart, Australia's richest person, are now evenly divided since the new lawsuit filed by the two eldest pit them against their two youngest siblings.

In the US, the ISM manufacturing index rose from 56.6 to 59.0 in October, above forecasts for a result near 56.2. Construction spending fell by 0.4% in September, whereas economists had tipped a 0.7% gain. And the six largest automakers in the US have reported October sales that were up 6% on a year ago.

The Australian sharemarket has ended the session near the day's lows. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) slipped 20pts or 0.3 per cent to 5,485. Consumer Staples were the worst performing sector dropping 1.94 per cent. Volume 1.68 billion shares traded worth $4.2 billion. 359 stocks finishes firmer, 579 ended lower and 360 closed unchanged.

The Local share market has started the new trading week in a lethargic fashion with buyers and sellers scarcely making an impression one way or the other in early trade on Monday. The lack of commitment from local participants came despite resounding gains in the US at the end of last week. US share markets rose sharply on Friday with the Dow Jones and S&P 500 indexes at record highs as investors drew comfort from the Bank of Japan's move to purchase more assets. The Dow Jones rose by 195 poi...

Canada has temporarily banned issuing visas to the Ebola-afflicted nations of Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Apple shares have reached a new high by the end of October as stock price was recorded at $108.

The BoJ took everyone by surprise on Friday. The shock of a ¥30 trillion increase in the pace of long-term government bonds (JBG's) and major portfolio rebalancing from the Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) has added a new dimension to the global currency wars.

ANZ Bank opposes the plan by the Australian government to force lenders to have larger capital buffers because of its impact on consumers who would end up paying $100 more on their monthly amortisations.

An HSBC report confirmed previous speculations that Australia would dislodge Qatar as the world's biggest liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter in 2018. Its major markets would be mainly Asian nations, particularly China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and India.

One of the two things said to be permanent in life is set to hit Australians in the next four years. And it would be a painful and big hit, costing them $25 billion until 2018.

In the US, personal income rose by 0.2% in September with spending down by 0.2%. Both results were slightly weaker than expected. The final reading on consumer sentiment in October was 86.9, up from 84.6 and at a 7-year high.

Lava from Hawaii's Kilauea volcano is already threatening homes in Pahoa.

More states in the U.S. have joined New York, New Jersey and Illinois and issued much stricter regulations concerning the Ebola virus.

FIFA highly supports the staging of the World Cup 2018 in Russia.

Getting infected with Ebola is also fatal to one's pocket.

The report highlights the advantage of savings on time and travel costs despite the limited space in inner city.

A Russian government agency has warned its young people against taking selfies.

Australian shares recovered this afternoon to make up for most of the earlier losses. The ASX 200 Index fell by 0.1 per cent following a 0.8 per cent improvement on Monday.

Australian shares are falling for just the second time in 11 days, with the ASX200 down by 0.4 per cent. Despite wiping out more than half of Monday's improvements, local stock are hanging close to one month highs.

Agents from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency has been directed to inspect all vessels entering the waters of United Kingdom for potential Ebola infections.

US earnings season continues to deliver as expected - estimates have been low. However, 79.8% of those companies that have reported have beaten earnings per share estimates, and 60.5% have beaten revenue estimates.

Walmart created a section on its website, named “Fat Girl Costumes.”