POLITICS & POLICY

Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd resigned from his post Wednesday night, leading to a leadership battle in the Australian Labor Party. Rudd, who was ousted as prime minister by Julia Gillard in 2010, said he has lost her confidence.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian dollar has had a relatively quiet trading session overnight, despite the political uncertainty created by Kevin Rudd's resignation as Foreign Minister late yesterday.

Further easing is seen in the local stock market on Thursday with investors taking to the sidelines with no significant progress made in the economic fronts of Europe and the U.S.

U.S. stocks pared their losses to trade a touch lower as investors took a cautious stance on the European economic outlook after the Dow's rise to the cusp of new highs.

The continuing rift within Australia's Labour Party has forced Kevin Rudd to rescind his post as the country's Foreign Minister stressing this is the most honourable thing to do amidst the political attacks marring his credibility.

The Australian sharemarket rose slightly today for the fourth consecutive day. Four straight sessions of gains is something the market has not accomplished since the end of November last year. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) edged higher by 0.1 pct or 3.9 pts to 4372.1.

Same-sex marriage in Australia is inevitable, and this came from PM Julia Gillard, according to the couples who dined with her at the Lodge Tuesday night, and some of them carried personal discussions on the future of the legalization of their unions in Australia.

The Minerals Council of Australia is supporting the minerals resource rent tax. Mitch Hooke, chief of the council, told a Senate hearing in Canberra on Tuesday that the proposed 30 per cent tax on profits of large coal and iron producers is workable.

Distractions continue to haunt the federal government as the ruling Australian Labor Party struggles to address the nagging leadership speculations that threatens to end the barely two-year rule of Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has backed the claim of Australian lenders that funding costs sourced from overseas have risen.

The Gold Administration Bureau of China on Tuesday has announced that gold making in the country's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in 2011 jumped by 15.18 per cent to register a new record high of 12.1 tonnes compared from a year ago.

Lynas Corp., it what could be another blow to its business operating principles, has been categorically denied yet again support by the Australian government regarding its highly controversial waste material yet to be produced from its $200-million rare earths processing plant in Malaysia.

The annual consumer price index (CPI) of India has hit 7.65 per cent for January compared over a year ago, hinting efforts to moderate prices are working. Albeit higher than wholesale price index (WPI), the latest CPI likewise suggests a rate cut by the central bank might not occur sometime soon.

Taiwan's largest steel producer, China Steel Corp, on Tuesday announced it is poised to dispense some $110 million or AU$102 million to buy the share of output rights at the MDL 162 coal mine site in the northern state of Queensland, Australia.

Market consolidation and some profit-taking will hit the Australian stock markets on Wednesday as investors have shifted their wariness to the lingering tension with Iran and the rest of the members of the United Nations.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar is weaker this morning as concerns remain Greece will require more financial assistance despite the approval of a second bailout package.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average pierced the 13000 level for the first time since before the financial crisis, but traded largely below the mark during a choppy session in which stocks were negative at times. The Dow broke 13,000 before noon Tuesday and a handful of other times throughout the day, but was down 17 points, or 0.1%, at 12933 in afternoon trading.

The Australian sharemarket rose for the third consecutive session today, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) gaining 0.8 pct or 35.4 pts to 4368.2. This has been the best start to a new week since early January 2012. All sectors recorded healthy gains by market close with energy, mining and industrial stocks the standouts.

Spot gold grew on Tuesday, albeit marginally, in what could be seen as a festive carry over from Monday's positive improvements in the eurozone and China's easing of the reserve requirements ratio for itsbanks.

In a bid to avert experiencing the same fate of its fellow Asian neighbor, China's National Energy Administration (NEA) on Monday announced it has started a series of 13 research and development projects aimed to improve emergency response mechanisms in cases of "extreme disasters" related to nuclear power plants failure, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Imports of the chilled liquefied natural gas (LNG) by the world's third largest economy rose to a record high in January as Japan continues to veer away from nuclear power dependency, shutting down on Monday another clear reactor damaged as a result of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that hit the resource-poor country.

A new study suggested that coal and unconventional fuel sources will do more harm to earth's climate than oilsands.

Prime Minister Julia is scheduled to host a dinner date with three gay couples on Tuesday night, in which the small talks are expected to focus on the proposed same-sex union currently lodged at the Parliament.

The Department of Labor is now undergoing a public comment period up until the end of February concerning a new rule which tackles wage protections to two groups that are predominantly female: casual babysitters and companions for the elderly and infirmed.

Positive developments with the euro zone set to approve a second bailout for Greece as China slashed its banks' reserve requirements ration helped pave a generally good start for major commodities this week.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is seeking evidence from supplies of supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths to nail the two grocers on unfair competition charges.

Prime Minister John Key on Monday said the $6B figure related to proceeds of state-owned assets was to "our best estimates." The PM’s statement was a modification of how Finance Minister Bill English described the proceeds of state-owned assets sales.

Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd has been blamed for causing trouble within the Australian Labor Party, with one former ally strongly suggesting that the former Prime Minister should either shut up or move out.

The Prime Minister remembered the 70th anniversary of the bombing of Darwin, Darwin though his speech about this "dark" event.