MARKETS

Well, if we thought last week was a big one for the Australian economy and policy (and investors), then this week is even more vital.

The Australian dollar has opened up in the mid 1.0700’s this morning after the jobs data released from the US for May on Friday night fell short of expectations.

Another rotten week for markets around the globe, with most notching a fifth week in a row in the red.

The high volatility in markets continues to hurt commodities, with that rush for yield and gains in April gone and seemingly forgotten.

Vanguard expanded its exchange traded fund (ETF) range this week, adding three new funds to its suite of Australian and International equity ETFs.

Sucrogen today announced an agreement to buy the Proserpine Co-operative Sugar Milling Association Limited (PCSMA) for $115 million dollars.

The U.S. Labor Department earlier today released its private sector payroll report for May.

Kogan will release a laptop based on Google's Chrome operating system on June 7, beating Asian PC makers Samsung and Acer as first to release the Chromebook.

Australia's share markets drifted lower today in subdued trading conditions as investors and traders took a breather after a wild week. Losses were limited by bargain hunting and technical support at the low point established in the last fortnight. Globally, markets are on hold ahead of the non-farm payrolls data to be released tonight in the US, analysts said.

Shares tumbled by over 2 pct yesterday, marking the biggest daily percentage fall in close to 12 months. It is a much better day for the market today however, with the All Ordinaries index (XAO) down a modest 0.3 pct or 16 pts to 4667.2.

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Five aboriginal groups in the Western Pilbara region is set to benefit from the mining resources boom in Australia as they confirm signing an agreement with mining firm Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO).

The emulsifier itself has not been identified specifically, but is described by the China Post as a "clouding agent" used in sports drinks, fruit juices, jellies, yogurt drinks and yogurt tablets.

U.S. blue-chip stocks dropped for a second straight session Thursday after another dose of soft economic data worried investors as they readied for a key jobs report.

US factory orders fell by 1.2pct in April, broadly in line with economist forecasts. US claims for unemployment insurance (jobless claims) fell by 6,000 in the latest week to 422,000.

The Australian dollar has opened slightly higher this morning as poor economic data weighed on the US currency.

According to the latest AICPA Economic Outlook Survey, chief financial officers, controllers and CPAs in executive and senior management accounting roles are far less optimistic now about the direction of the U.S. economy than they were in the first quarter of 2011.

By Richard (Rick) MillsAhead of the herdAs a general rule, the most successful man in life is the man who has the best informationPure gold deposits are increasingly difficult to find.

- Germany has declared it will phase out nuclear power by 2022- The short term impact will not be substantial- The medium term impact will not be substantial either By Greg PeelGermany is a world leader in the pursuit of renewable and other forms of ?green? energy and as such has spent a good deal o...

US factory orders fell by 1.2pct in April, broadly in line with economist forecasts. US claims for unemployment insurance (jobless claims) fell by 6,000 in the latest week to 422,000. Economists expected a result near 415,000.

U.S. blue-chip stocks dropped for a second straight session Thursday after another dose of soft economic data worried investors as they readied for a key jobs report.

Expect a lacklustre trading today at the Australian stock market because of negative to mixed leads derived from offshore trading overnight.

The release of worse than expected U.K. manufacturing data coupled with a media report which claimed that a scheduled IMF payment to Greece would be withheld has led to a broad sell off in the Pound Sterling and the common currency Euro, respectively.

No wonder the likes of Fitch Ratings and Moody's, one of its rivals, are increasingly wary of the impact of the Fukushima nuclear power station crisis in Japan.

Equity markets in the U.S. that had moved higher yesterday despite worse than expected economic data have now flipped back into negative territory.

U.S. stocks plunged Wednesday, suffering their biggest drop in almost a year, as a slew of downbeat reports prompted fears the economic recovery was running out of steam

The Australian sharemarket is having a very tough day today after receiving a weak lead from global markets overnight. The All Ordinaries index (XAO) is down 1.7 pct or 81.9 pts to 4706.7. All sectors are currently lower, with the financials, miners and energy stocks the worst.

The Australian sharemarket slumped in early trade today after receiving a weak lead from global markets overnight.

By Greg PeelThe Dow fell 279 points or 2.2% while the S&P lost 2.3% to 1314 and the Nasdaq dropped 2.3%.