Preciosa Dumlao

The Australian central bank on Tuesday has announced it would keep its main cash rate steady at 4.75 percent as expected. But analysts predict the decision might temporary as the government might raise interest rates later in the year to keep inflation in the light of massive trade and mining boom.

Australian publishing giant Fairfax Media on Tuesday reduced its earnings outlook as it announced it would outsource the sub-editing for its largest mastheads. The announcement was met negatively by investors which saw Fairfax's shares plunge in mid trade.

A Pakistani IT consultant "taking a break from the rat race by hiding in the mountains" unwittingly posted a stream real-time updates on Twitter of the attack at Osama bin Laden's mansion in city of Abbottabad without realizing it was a well-planned raid by U.S. forces against the world's most wanted terrorist.

The Pakistani government quickly hailed the death of Osama bin Laden as a "major setback" to global terrorism, but the killing of the world's most notorious terrorist near its capital Islamabad is seen to increase pressure to Pakistan which has long been suspected of aiding terrorist groups.

Ten years into the hunt against the world's most feared and hated terrorist, Osama bin Laden was finally killed in an encounter with U.S. forces at a mountain tourist town of Abbottabad, Pakistan. But the hunt for bin Laden has cost American taxpayer hundreds of billions of dollars, excluding the hundreds of billions more allocated to other parts of the budget used to strengthen domestic security.

Dow Jones Indexes, a leading global index provider, has announced The Global Dow, which measures the stock performance of 150 of the world's leading companies, will become the underlying index for State Street Global Advisors' SPDR Global Dow ETF, effective May 2, 2011.

Large hedge funds with over $10 billion in assets under management (AUM) typically purchase $40 million or more in professional liability insurance coverage, nearly 200% more than medium funds between $1 billion and $3 billion in AUM according to a benchmark study by SKCG Group, the risk management and insurance advisor to some of the world's largest hedge funds.

Todd Leih has joined 400 Capital Management as a partner and senior member of the portfolio management team. Todd joined the Firm from Jane Street where he was a senior portfolio manager for distressed fixed income structured finance strategies. Prior to Jane Street, Todd was a senior trading and risk manager at Banc of America Securities focusing on non‐agency mortgage credit and derivative strategies.

Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan said the new budget to be presented next week is seen to create some 500,000 jobs within two years and reduce the country's unemployment rate to 4.5 percent.

Credit agency Moody's Investors Service on Monday affirmed Australia's top rating for its government debt citing the country's strong economic outlook despite a risky local bank's borrowing overseas.

The world's number one pound-for-pound boxer Manny Pacquiao has stunned sparmate Ray Beltran Jr., with his "lightning bolt" speed that he described the Filipino boxing sensation as better than the last time they met.

The U.S. government has effectively ended its search for alien life after it slashed the budget of its only center that looks for intelligent life in the universe beyond Earth.

An American group opposed to male circumcision has claimed to have gathered sufficient number of signatures that calls for a ban against the practice of circumcision in San Francisco as a ballot measure for November elections.

A city east of the Philippine capital Manila is trying to set a world record for the most number of circumcised boys on May 7. The city government of Marikina has announced its "Tule (Circumcision) Party" to highlight the event.

Researchers in Italy are focusing their search for the remains of the woman who is believed to be Leonardo da Vinci's model for his most famous painting, the Mona Lisa, in the hope of finally unraveling the mystery that puzzled art historians and the world since the 16th century.

At the end of its annual general meeting, ALTIN AG (SIX: ALT, LSE: AIA), the Swiss alternative investment company, commented on its final results for 2010. In a generally gloomy financial environment, ALTIN achieved a very positive investment performance in 2010 of +12.47%, easily outperforming the funds of hedge funds index, HFRI FoF (+5.67%). Its highly liquid portfolio allows its manager to follow a dynamic management approach and to take advantage of the investment opportunities.

Cosmos Technologies, the product development arm of Indus Valley Partners, today announced the addition of a new product - "Cosmos Cash Master" to its product suite.

The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA), the global hedge fund association, has launched an initiative to engage with the Brazilian hedge fund industry and announced the appointment of a local representative, Michelle Noyes of BRZ Investimentos.

Controversial Hollywood actor Charlie Sheen will be visiting Australia next week to appear as a guest on both radio and TV, the former star of Two and a Half Men revealed.

Senator Doug Cameron, Labour's Left, has urged the Australian government to "pedal harder" in processing asylum seekers to help ease budding tensions in detention centres.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has called for an increased defence cooperation with Beijing as she wraps up her first visit to China. Gillard said a closer military ties with China would promote good relations and maintain regional peace and prosperity.

The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) has committed a total of $400 million to three emerging managers in the pension fund's Manager Development Program II (MDP II) for public equity investment.

Large Endowments and Foundations were early adopters of hedge funds in their portfolios with many allocating approximately 50% of their asset allocation. However, in the two years following the financial markets meltdown, these same investors stayed primarily on the sidelines for new hedge fund allocations. Over the past 6 months, Agecroft Partners has seen a significant increase in the search activity for endowments and foundations and expects this trend to continue for the foreseeable future. ...

Three schoolchildren were hurt when a kindergarten boy brought a loaded gun to his Houston elementary school children, officials said.

Libya's foreign minister Abdul Ati al-Obeidi has warned that the British decision to send military advisers to help rebels opposing the rule of strongman Moamar Gaddafi could worsen the war and prolong the chances of peace in the country.

Total capital invested in the global hedge fund industry exceeded $2 trillion for the first time in its history, according to data released today by Hedge Fund Research, Inc. (HFR), the leading provider of hedge fund industry data.

Managed futures lost 0.91% in March according to the Barclay CTA Index compiled by BarclayHedge. Year-to-date, the Barclay CTA Index is down 0.39%.

It's a story straight from the fairy tale books. A "commoner" marrying a handsome prince.On April 29, 2011, Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Middleton (born 9 January 1982) will be tying the knots with Prince William of Wales at Westminster Abbey.

It has been a decades-old tradition in the Philippines that some men (and women) crucify themselves at 3pm on Good Friday, the exact time Jesus Christ is believed to have died on the cross.