POLITICS & POLICY

The Australian market is abuzz with activity after it received a much needed shot in the arm when TRUenergy, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed power utility CLP Holdings Ltd., on Thursday declared it will undertake an A$3 billion (US$2.98 billion) initial public offering (IPO) listing in November this year.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar continued its run higher overnight only to give back gains this morning, as the PBOC cut lending rates and boosted market sentiment early in the session.

The big debate over bringing in foreign workers appear to have been settled in favour of mining companies as Australian newspapers run job advertisements that will target skilled foreign workers.

Australia's growing unemployment problem may even worsen in the coming months as more job cuts loom, including in the public sector. Amid Thursday's announcement that the unemployment rate slightly rose to 5.1 per cent from 5 per cent, reports said New South Wales (NSW) plans to axe the jobs of 10,000 public workers.

The Dow industrials rose for a third straight session after surprise moves from China's central bankers, but a weak reading on U.S. consumer credit and no new direction from the Fed about potential stimulus kept a lid on gains.

The Australian sharemarket managed to rise for the third straight day today, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) improving by 1.3 pct or 52 pts to 4156.7. The gains early in the session were partly due to further stimulus measures in the U.S and news that European leaders are eager to assist Spain.

The government of Australia's state of Queensland, currently embroiled over a nasty feud with the federal government over the highly controversial $6.4-billion coal mine project between India's GVK Power & Infrastructure, and Hancock Coal owned by Gina Rinehart, the world's richest woman, has given its go-signal to a proposed rail link system that will supplement the coal mine project.

The state government of Queensland has been stripped of its regulatory approval powers over the $6.4-billion Alpha Coal Mine project betweenHancock Coal owned by Gina Rinehart and India's GVK Power & Infrastructure, Australia's federal government said on Thursday.

Australia's exports of iron ore to China from Port Hedland in May jumped 17 per cent month-on-month, latest figures released by port authorities showed on Thursday.

On the very same day that China declared one of its nuclear power energy companies is mulling an initial public offering (IPO) to fund its projects, another company has announced receiving funding boost from its parent company.

The Transit of Venus has long been completed, but some Earthlings are still thrilled by having observed the rare event. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson is one of the scientists who shouted out on Twitter the relevance of the Transit of Venus in modern day space study.

Nuclear power use may have abruptly lost its appeal in 2011 because of Japan's nuclear reactor disaster, but suffice to say, it is bound to stage a powerful comeback, thanks to the energy requirements of the emerging economies in the very same Asian continent where the world's third-largest economy is located.

China has decided to go on full scale with its nuclear power programme in anticipation of a massive energy requirement from a growing and urbanizing population.

The massive demand for iron ore by Indian steel mills has encouraged the Rio Tinto Group, the world's third-biggest mining company, to consider earlier plans of setting up an iron ore mine in the country.

U.S. stocks posted their biggest percentage gains of the year Wednesday as investors read remarks by central bankers in Europe and the U.S. as a signal that more monetary stimulus may be on the way. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 286.84 points, or 2.4%, to 12414.79, and the euro rose 1% to trade well above $1.25.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar has experienced a strong squeeze higher as those with bearish sentiment on the local currency have been taken by surprise "again".

Nine Network's A Current Affair TV show was spared the embarrassment as well as paying a former prostitute $60,000 for a controversial interview which it did not air the last minute. The ex-sex trade worker initially claimed that embattled MP Craig Thomson was her client which could have provided evidence to the Fair Work Australia (FWA) charge that Mr Thomson misused Health Services Union (HSU) funds to pay for services of hookers.

After a shaky start to the day, the Australian sharemarket managed to edge higher for the second consecutive session. In the first few hours of trade, shares changed directions more frequently than a lost tourist however settled with the release of some important economic news. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) rose 0.3 pct or 12.3 pts to 4104.7.

Prince Philip who is also known as the Duke of Edinburgh was not present during the Queen's Diamond Jubilee concert because he was rushed to the hospital due to an infection. Despite this mishap, celebrations were still in progress and royal members assured the public that Prince Philip was already on the way to recovery.

The Transit of Venus has begun at 22:09 UTC on June 5th (8:09 a.m. June 6th in Australia) and photos of the astronomical phenomenon have surfaced online. We took a look at the photos being uploaded to Flickr, particularly those in The NASA Venus Transit Observing Challenge Pool.

The Australian economy may be among the worlds' most developed but as far as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is concerned, the country has a lot of catching up to do to achieve a respectable level of green economy.

China took offence on the regular air quality advisories issued by the U.S. diplomatic mission in the country, which Beijing claimed was not only inaccurate but also contradict the official notices issued by the country's environment officials.

Australia's economic growth had exceeded expectations in the March quarter of 2012 on the back of better consumer spending and construction activities.

The horrific story finally ends as Luka Magnotta, the “Canadian Psycho” cannibal who “chopped and ate” gate lover finally got arrested. And in such a peculiar place, Magnotta was captured in an internet café while he was checking news about himself.

Indonesia, the world's top thermal coal exporter, is looking into implementing duties on its exports of the raw commodity to save more for domestic use, a risk which could mean losing some $11 billion for its national coffers.

Africa still holds the key to the best gold discoveries among all gold-bearing countries in the world, irrespective of the political upheavals and armed uprising in that region, the chief executive of Montreal-based Semafo Inc. (SMF) said.

Coal miners in Canada continue to remain bullish on the fate of the sector in the world market amid dropping prices and an oversupply in China, the second-largest economy and also one of the world's largest consumers of the raw basic commodity.

Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan has again called on the country's giant banks to pass on to their customers the benefits of the rate cut that the Reserve Bank has announced yesterday, insisting that these lenders are profitable enough.

The issue of Australian banks earning mega profits while borrowers are being slapped with high interest rate cropped up again with the release on Wednesday of a report by the Australian Institute.