MARKETS

The Australian share market started off slightly stronger again today and by lunchtime the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) had rallied 30points higher to 4,450 points, as the reversal in the US$ oil price overnight and strength in the retail sector boosted stocks. The XAO set to close higher for the seventh straight day.

The Australian Dollar opens marginally higher today at 1.0230. The case for Tuesday’s 25 basis point cut to the official cash rate was underpinned after yesterday’s sluggish retail sales data which showed only a modest increase of 0.2 per cent for the month of August.

By Rudi Filapek-Vandyck, Editor FNArenaI joined Twitter. Not because I am curious what this celebrity has to say about her kids, or to read that another one is waiting for a connecting flight, impatiently.

By Peter Switzer, Switzer Super ReportI expected a nice result for stocks last quarter based on the European Central Bank (ECB) pulling off a big play ? it delivered!My prediction was also based on an expectation that the QE3 stimulus package in the United States would come if needed, and Ben Bernan...

With global commodity prices of iron ore and coal at record-low levels, mining giant Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) has apparently forayed into the agriculture to seek other sources of income outside the once very profitable resources sector.

By Greg PeelThe Dow rose 80 points, or 0.6%, while the S&P gained 0.7% to 1461 and the Nasdaq added 0.

The Australian sharemarket improved for the sixth consecutive day, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) rising by 0.3 per cent or 13.8 pts to 4472.6. While this perhaps doesn't sound overly impressive, it is the best winning streak for the local market since December 2011. The gains haven't been backed by a rise in volume though, with investors still shying away from truly diving headfirst into equities.

The Australian share market started of strong up near 10 points but as the morning went on the market lost ground. By lunchtime the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) moved into the red and was off 1pt to 4,460 points, hit by the slide in the oil price overnight and weak economic data.

There is a vast amount more to this story than we can cover. For example, Denise pointed out to the Senators on the Economic References Committee that the government is currently profiting from this behaviour, as it owns a huge amount of the dodgy mortgages.

By David Eller, Investment U ResearchWall Street likes simple stories. If you can't fit an idea into an elevator pitch, it gets glossed over or distilled down into a one-liner.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 12 points, or 0.1%, while the S&P gained 0.4% to 1450 as the Nasdaq jumped 0.

Pakistan denied a published report last week that some of the 21,000 imported Australian sheep suspected of carrying the salmonella bacteria and ordered culled by Karachi authorities were killed in a brutal manner.

Even though we were only 13 at the time, the decision to move to Australia was made by your editor.

The Australian share market continued its solid run this morning. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) opening 20 points higher, despite the weak close on overseas markets and falls in gold and oil futures.

Investors want to know, "What happened to all of Mr. Bernanke's money?" You'll recall that, a couple of weeks ago, the central banking industry's most famous beard announced that he would flood the markets with another round of quantitative easing, or "QE."

We're down here in the Andes, continuing our tour of the future. What have we learned so far? It might be too early to sell America and buy Argentina, but we'd keep an eye on the trade.

It's not only the falling terms of trade that's making Australia poorer by the day. It's the fact half the country has the day off! It's a public holiday in four Australian states and the ACT today. No wonder there's a productivity crisis in the economy. C'mon Australia. Do you think anybody has the day off at the Foxconn factory in China?

Uh. Things are heating up in 'The Code War.' Last week we wrote about the rise in un-armed conflict between...well between pretty much everyone (organised crime, hackers, governments, terrorists etc). This week there are a lot of 'pre-incident' indicators that suggest we're on the verge of a new era of permanent on-line conflict in which systems that control information are one of many targets.

Credit card giant American Express (Amex) has agreed to pay $85 million to around 250,000 consumers for violating consumer protection laws in marketing, billing and debt collection practices, reported the New York Times on Monday, with the financial institution also expected to pay up to $27.5 million in fines to regulators.

- Christmas will be very competitive- Retailer inventory levels high- Discounting to be unprecedentedBy Eva BrocklehurstOnce again, retailers are expecting a very competitive Christmas shopping season.

"Bull Trend Intact" for Gold, But "Zero Silver Demand" Seen in IndiaBy Ben TraynorSPOT MARKETgold bullion prices dipped below $1770 an ounce during Monday morning London trading, though they remained in line with the last fortnight's price action, while European stock markets rallied along with...

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed down 32 points, or 0.2%, while the S&P gained 0.1% to 1445 and the Nasdaq added 0.

The Australian sharemarket rose for the fourth consecutive session, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) rising by 1 pct or 43.6 pts to 4451.9. Despite the improvement, volume and value of shares exchanging hands remained light due to public holidays in China, Hong Kong and India.

Today, the Australian share market followed the lead of the US and European markets higher, with the gains in oil and gold helping the material sector run higher in early trade. By lunchtime the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) had held on to early gains up 28 points to 4,436 points.

Two percent is what the Bureau of Labor Statistics says. But the quants are massaging the numbers so hard, they're breaking their backs. The real rate is probably closer to 5%. Maybe 10%. Who knows? You might say "it depends on how you mis-measure it".

By Andrew NelsonWe were doing all right after the GFC. It wasn't comfortable, but comfort could be taken from having a look at Europe and the US.

It has been two months since the Australian Investors' Association (AIA) in conjunction with FNArena announced the results of their two-monthly Australian Investors Sentiment Survey.

By Andrew NelsonSeptember started off as about the worst looking month we've seen in the uranium spot market in quite a while.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 77 points, or 0.6%, while the S&P rose 0.3% to 1444 and the Nasdaq slipped 0.