Christine Gaylican

Stocks slid for a second straight day as a trio of disappointing economic readings outweighed better-than-expected earnings reports from Travelers and others. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 69 points, or 0.5%, to 12964. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index shed 8.2 points, or 0.6%, to 1377, and the Nasdaq Composite ticked down 24 points, or 0.8% to 3008.

Analysts are looking forward to Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard's speech harping on the Reserve Bank to cut rates to prop up the domestic economy. This may lower down the pessimistic leads seen reflecting on Thursday's Australian markets beginning with the IMF's disclosure that the European debt burden will still weigh down on global markets.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar is slightly weaker this morning after a mildly negative night in offshore markets.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The AUD is stronger this morning, currently trading at USD1.0400, after a better than expected result for the Spanish bill auction overnight saw equity markets rise and risk appetite return to the market.

MORNING REPORT (7am AEST)US factory output fell for the first time in four months, down by 0.2pct in March. US industrial output was unchanged in March after a similar result in February. For the March quarter industrial production rose at a 5.4pct annual rate, with manufacturing advancing at a 10.4pct pace. US housing starts fell 5.8pct in March to an annual rate of 654,000 units. However building permits rose 4.5pct to a 747,000 unit annual pace - the highest since September 2008.

Stocks rallied Tuesday as worries eased about Spain's rising borrowing costs and investors cheered a series of strong quarterly earnings reports from U.S. companies, shrugging off mixed U.S. economic data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose amid better-than-expected retail sales data, while Apple shares' biggest drop since October pulled other major benchmarks into the red. The Dow bounced from its biggest weekly slide of the year to rise 71.82 points, or 0.6%, to 12921.41.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar is trading relatively unchanged this morning from yesterday's levels following a choppy night of trading with equities mixed, US Treasuries little changed and upward pressure on European bond yields.

MORNING REPORT (7am AEST)US retail sales rose by a larger than expected 0.8pct in March after rising by 1.0pct in February. Forecasts centred on 0.3pct growth. Excluding autos and gasoline sales rose by 0.7pct.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar retraced during Friday night's trading after China's Q1 GDP data disappointed the market with an increase of 8.1% yoy and has opened in the mid 1.0300's this morning.

U.S. stocks fell sharply Friday, capping this year's biggest weekly declines, after disappointing economic data from China and rising borrowing costs in Spain damped sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 136.99 points, or 1.1%, to 12849.59, while the S&P 500 lost 17.31 points, or 1.3%, to 1370.26

MORNING REPORT (6am AEST)US consumer prices rose by 0.3pct in March with core prices (excludes food and energy) up by 0.2pct. Both results were in line with expectations. Consumer sentiment eased from 76.2 to 75.7 in April, below forecasts centred on a result near 76.2.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: Positive economic sentiment out of the US and China, coupled with strong domestic jobs data, has seen the AUD surge higher and open back above USD1.0400 this morning.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted its biggest one-day surge in nearly a month after the New York Federal Reserve Bank's president reiterated that interest rates likely will remain low and traders took an optimistic view of global growth.

MORNING REPORT (7am AEST)US jobless claims rose by a surprising 13,000 to 380,000 last week - a two-month high. Economists had expected weekly claims to fall to 355,000. The US trade deficit shrank by 12.4pct to $46 billion in February, as exports hit a record high. It was the biggest monthly decline in the trade shortfall since May 2009.

The authentic adventurer in you would for sure be captivated by the vast moorlands and valleys surrounding England's Cumbria and Lake District.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: A turnaround in market sentiment overnight has seen the AUD rally to back above USD1.0300.

Charter Hall Retail REIT (ASX:CQR) (the 'REIT') has announced that it is in the tail-end of acquiring Wanneroo Central Shopping Centre in Perth, Western Australia for $70 million.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The AUD is lower this morning due to a drop in sentiment offshore, brought on by worries about Spain's economy and Friday's weak US non-farm payrolls data.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The AUD is unchanged after the Easter break despite some weaker than expected US payrolls data which was released during Friday's offshore trading session.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian dollar fell to a 3 month low against the USD overnight as investors once again sold out of higher yielding assets.

As a self-confessed kinesthetic learner, who loves to do rather than sit around listening in a classroom setting, Pip Andersen was thrilled to put the Nokia Lumia 900 to a test as he ventures the cobbled streets of Barcelona, Spain.

Stocks fell as the S&P 500 notched its second-biggest decline of the year, joining a global stock selloff after a disappointing Spanish bond auction. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined for a second-straight session Wednesday, sliding 124.80 points, or 1%, to 13074.75.

MORNING REPORT (7am AEST)The ADP employment report confirmed another substantial gain in private sector jobs of 209k in March. The February reading was revised up to 230k. The ISM non-manufacturing report eased from 57.3 to 56.0 in March. The business activity index slipped from 61.2 to 58.9, with the new orders index also falling from 61.2 to 58.8.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian dollar has opened lower this morning, to be currently trading around USD1.0320, and looks like it may break below USD1.0300 during our trading session today.

MORNING REPORT (7am AEST)The ISM manufacturing index rose by from 52.4 to 53.4. Across the sub-indices production jumped to from 55.3 to 58.3 , the new orders balance dipped from 54.9 to 54.5 and the employment reading rose from 53.2 to 56.1, a 9-month high.US construction spending fell 1.1pct to an annual rate of $808.86 billion, a 7-month low. The result was well below forecasts which centred on a rise of 0.6pct. Spending in January was revised to show a much bigger 0.8pct fall instea...

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The AUD is slightly higher this morning after some positive data out of the US and the UK boosted investor optimism.

Stocks rose to multiyear highs in the first session of the new quarter after a solid reading on domestic manufacturing activity in March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 52.45 points, or 0.40%, to 13264.49, its highest close since December 2007.

Florida-based multi-strategy alternative investment manager, Stonehenge Asset Management, LLC is set to launch its third multi-strategy hedge fund, Stonehenge Diversified III, in April this year. The new fund will be domiciled in the U.S. and has appointed NAV Consulting Inc., as administrator.