Vittorio Hernandez

There was a lot of rejoicing at the Fed minutes; a one line synopsis of the release would read - the Fed continues to champion accommodation for the foreseeable futures.

US FOMC minutes saw Fed members having a generally cautious outlook. The minutes made it clear that a number of members believe the unemployment rate alone does not fully capture the amount of slack in the labour market, while also claiming it was too early to confirm that the economy is moving to sustained above-trend growth.

Australian oil and gas giant Woodside Petroleum is no longer interested in buying one-fourth of the largest natural gas field in Israel for $2.6 billion after talks with a consortium collapsed.

With the threat of El Nino looming over different parts of the world, popular jeans maker Levi's wants to contribute its bit to the environment, particularly water conservation efforts, by advocating its jeans need not be washed at all.

All eyes are on the newly released Surface Pro 3 by Microsoft and its rivalry with the Apple bestseller tablet, the 13-inch MacBook Air. However, what has gone unnoticed by the tech world is how Lenovo has reportedly overtaken the sales of Apple's Macs in the U.S. PC market for the first time.

A new medical produce offers a possible solution to a female problem that comes with age - sagging mammary glands.

China was the largest trading partner of Australia in 2013 when Canberra exported $102 billion worth of products and services.

Fresh from his winking controversy on Wednesday, embattled Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott would likely be criticised anew over an admission from his office that his daughter Frances received a scholarship worth $60,000 from the Whitehouse Institute of Design.

The Dream Match between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr is definitely off - at least for the next two-and-a-half years. Yahoo Sports reported on Wednesday that the eight-division title holder from the Philippines just extended his contract with Bob Arum's Top Rank Promotions until the end of 2016.

Despite predictions of a 0.6 per cent fall on our market today and a shaky start, local stocks managed to close flat. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) added 2.2 points or 0.04 per cent by the close to finish at 5403.9 points, supported by gains in energy stocks and defensive player Telstra (TLS).

Concerns of the impact a weaker iron ore price could have on the economy is pushing the sharemarket lower for the second time this week. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is down 0.7 per cent, taking the losses over the past three days to 1.8 per cent. A triple digit loss for the Dow Jones Index is adding fuel to the fire.

Discretionary spending is always the first part of the economy to suffer in nervous markets. Consumer sentiment globally is just starting to slip, after having run up very solidly over the past three to four months, and it this now shifting to discretionary earnings.

US Philadelphia Federal Reserve President Plosser spoke on Tuesday, commenting that the $2.5 trillion in reserves accumulated by banks could be the trigger for more rapid inflation if banks start lending money quickly in an improving economy. Plosser said it was the ´´natural tendency´´ for central banks to wait too long to raise rates. He believes there was increasing evidence that rates should be lifted from the current zero levels ´´if not now, then relatively soon´´, particularly in light of ...

The "when" has been settled after Mayweather Promotions Chief Executive Leonard Ellerbe announced on Tuesday that Floyd Mayweather's next fight would be on Sept 13.

Perish the thought of the Dream Match between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. Both camps indicated on Tuesday that the two pound-for-pound champions have other opponents in mind.

Organisers of two international sports events in Brazil are having huge headaches over the hosting of the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and the Summer Olympic Games in 2016.

It is not only among Australians that Prime Minister Tony Abbott's popularity has plummeted because of the proposed Coalition budget perceived as breaking some of the party's election promises.

Another hole has been punched into the argument of the Coalition that the proposed 2014-15 budget would be for the long-term benefit of Australia. In insisting that the Opposition's vow to block in Parliament the spending cuts would be bad for the country, Prime Minister Tony Abbott even cited an alleged threat from rating agency Standard & Poor's that the nation's AAA credit rating could be subject to a review.

Local stocks recovered this afternoon, managing to rise slightly for the first time in three trading sessions. Continued concerns about an oversupply of iron ore and weaker than expected property price growth in China was put to one side, following Monday's 1.3 per cent plummet.

The Australian sharemarket is slipping for the third straight session, with Chinese property market concerns keeping iron ore prices weak. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is down 0.2 per cent and remains below 5400pts, making it the worst start to a week in three and a half months.

The eerie quiet discussed yesterday is certainly playing true; overnight the US markets experienced one of the quietest trading sessions of 2014, with shares volume trading 25% below the 90-day average. Risk assets saw the light trade as a chance to bounce off the lows seen last week, but volume throughout the market suggests the bears where resting, rather than a conviction buy move.

US San Francisco Federal Reserve President Williams and Dallas Fed President Fisher spoke at a monetary policy conference. Both speakers agreed that the super-easing monetary policy conditions could have adverse consequences in the long run - resulting in excessive asset price growth and encouraging investors to take on too much risk. However Williams doesn´t believe rates should rise till the second half of 2015.

It looks like American boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr could be forced to eat some humble pie if the pay-per-view (PPV) figures cited by Dan Rafael of ESPN are correct. Rafael said that contrary to Money May's expectation that the PPV buys would exceed 1 million, his sources estimated the more accurate figure would be between 800,000 and 900,000.

In a twist of fate, testicular cancer survivor and champion cyclist Lance Armstrong found his missing testicles - not in real life but in a card game.

A 16-year-old Brazilian youth who lives in New York City was recognised by the Guinness World Records as the fastest texter in the world. Marcel Fernandes typed a 25-word paragraph in 18.19 seconds on April 25, using his Samsung Galaxy S4 phone.

American drug giant Pfizer's plan to create the world's biggest pharmaceutical firm was thwarted on Monday when British medicine manufacturer AstraZeneca turned down Pfizer's offer of $119 billion.

Iron ore prices are again going down. On Friday night, spot price for the key steelmaking ingredient closed at $100.70 per tonne after a substantial decline in Chinese steel rebar futures which hit a record low.

It is not only in the area of increasing taxes that many Australians believe Prime Minister Tony Abbott broke his election promises. The Opposition charged that he also violated his campaign vow not to force redundancies on government employees.

The Australian share market started the trading week heavily in the red, falling 1.3 per cent on the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) as fears of a burst in China's property bubble impacted mining players and investor sentiment.