BUSINESS

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday June 26, 2014

The Australian sharemarket is improving for the second time this week, with a positive lead from Wall Street helping lift local stocks. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is up 0.8 per cent, creeping back above the key 5400 point mark. The property trusts are the lone losers at lunch, with all other sectors recording at least modest gains.
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Apple Posts Job Ads for Siri to Support 13 More Languages

After the announced Siri enhancements at the Worldwide Development Conference (WWDC), Cupertino tech giant Apple post job ads that will teach the digital assistant Siri to expand her existing lexicon and at the same time understand and speak 13 more new languages.

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon June 25, 2014

The ASX 200 remained under pressure over the course of the afternoon, although there were some signs of resilience. The index recovered from session lows when it was down by about 64 points. At that level the index was at 5378, marking an area of support that has been a feature of recent week. Buyers defended the level successfully and the market traded higher although buyers were reluctant to take the bourse substantially beyond the 5400 mark. Investor interest was respectable with healthy leve...

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday June 25, 2014

The Australian sharemarket is losing ground for the second straight day, with weakness across U.S markets and continued conflicts in Iraq and Ukraine keeping investors edgy. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is back below 5400pts, falling by 0.5 per cent at lunch.

Global Markets Overview – June 25, 2014

US equities unwound despite some mostly positive economic releases, as geopolitical risk came back into play. The conference board's consumer confidence and new home sales both came in well ahead of estimates, but this wasn't enough to lift sentiment. Fed members were also quite vocal with Dudley saying a mid-2015 rate hike seemed reasonable, while Plosser suggested the Fed is closer to meeting its twin objectives. Risk assets lost some ground, while the yen and gold were bid higher in a f...

Australian Stock Market Report – Morning June 25, 2014

In US economic data, new home sales soared by 18.6% in May to a 504,000 annual rate, above forecasts for a result near 440,000. Consumer confidence rose from 83.0 to a 6-1/2 year high of 85.2 in June, above forecasts near 83.5. The Case Shiller measure of home prices rose by 0.2% in April with the annual rate easing from 12.4% to 10.8%. But the Richmond Federal Reserve index eased from +7 to +3 in June.

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon June 24, 2014

The Australian sharemarket erased around half of Monday's improvements, dragged lower by US weakness. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) finished 0.3 per cent softer, with the major banks the worst performers. Improvements amongst the industrials and property trusts were short lived today and all sectors ended in the red.
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Google Inc. Pays Only $220K Tax in New Zealand Despite Earnings of $10M

Google Inc may be paying more taxes in New Zealand with a bill of $227,074 in 2013. However, according to reports, the Internet search giant has earned US$15.42 billion in global revenues in the first quarter of 2014. Comparing Google's tax bill in New Zealand and its total earnings, the amount the company paid to the government may be deemed not enough.

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday June 24, 2014

The Australian sharemarket is losing ground at lunch, with U.S. market weakness providing a negative lead for local shares. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is down 0.4 per cent, with all sectors in the red. On Monday, the Australian market rose by 0.4 per cent thanks to better than expected economic news in China.

Global Markets Overview – June 24, 2014

The major development from overnight trade was news that Iraq's army enjoyed a minor victory after recapturing some territory from militants. This resulted in a sharp decline in oil prices, particularly Brent crude which is more sensitive to geopolitical issues. The drop in oil along with some encouraging US economic data in the form of flash manufacturing PMI and existing home sales helped US markets come off their lows and finish the session relatively flat. However, it was a different stor...

Australian Stock Market Report – Morning June 24, 2014

In US economic data, the Markit ´´flash´´ manufacturing purchasing manager's index rose from 56.4 to 57.5 in June, above forecasts near 56.5. Existing home sales rose by 4.9% to a 4.89 million annual rate in May, above forecasts of 4.73m. And the national activity index rose from minus 0.15 points to +0.21 points in May.

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday June 23, 2014

The Australian sharemarket is kicking off the new week a little firmer, thanks to another record close in U.S. markets on Friday and some better than expected Chinese economic news this morning. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is up 0.9 per cent, with all sectors in the black at lunch.

Global Markets Overview – June 23, 2014

Risk currencies got off to a bit of a negative start this morning, despite a lack of fresh sentiment drivers for the region. Perhaps some reports suggesting escalating Iraq tension have seen risk modestly offered this morning. This is despite US equities finishing the week on a modestly positive note in a fairly quiet session. The only notable news out of the weekend were comments by ECB President Mario Draghi suggesting the ECB has prolonged banks' access to unlimited liquidity up to the end...

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