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Greater to offer lower-rate home loans
The Greater Building Society says it will begin providing home loans at a lower rate than the big four banks, as it seeks to lure...

Fortescue expansion plans to cost $6.2b
Iron ore producer Fortescue Metals Group Ltd has increased the production target at its planned third mine and put a $A6.24b price tag on a...

FIRB approves Macarthur takeover
Australian officials have cleared Macarthur Coal's planned takeover of Gloucester Coal, which would see Singapore's Noble Group take a 24.6% stake in Macarthur.

Aust dollar higher, bonds weaker at noon
The Australian dollar was slightly higher at noon on Friday as it traded in a tight range in the wake of the release of jobs...

ASX higher with broad-based gains
The Australian stock market was higher at noon making broad-based gains following an ultimately positive lead from Wall Street overnight.

Stocks to watch
Stocks of interest on the Australian stock exchange at noon.

Credit, debit card transaction fall 22%
The total value of credit and charge card transactions, including advances, fell by 22 per cent in January, RBA figures released show.

Natural peril costs exceed budget: IAG
Insurance Australia Group Ltd says natural peril costs will exceed its budgeted allowance for the second half after the severe weather in Victoria.

Cape Lambert shares jump after sale
Shares in Cape Lambert Resources jumped more than 10 per cent after the resources and investment company sold a copper project for $135 million.

TPG goes into trading halt
TPG Telecom Ltd shares have been placed in a trading halt while shareholders of PIPE Networks Ltd vote on whether to approve TPG's offer to...

CBH enters trading halt on takeover bid
Shares in zinc, lead and silver miner CBH Resources have gone into a trading halt after the company received a takeover proposal.

$A opens flat, dampened by Chinese data
The Australian dollar opened little changed on Friday after worrying Chinese inflation data locked the resource sensitive currency into a tight trading range.

Stocks to watch
Stocks of interest on the Australian stock exchange today.

Oil prices hold, metals rise
Oil prices stayed put, just above $US82, on Thursday, as investors mulled demand uncertainties and a report that showed America's natural gas reserves shrank.

ASX receives flat to positive leads
The Australian market has received flat to positive leads from overseas markets overnight, with Wall Street edging into positive territory in afternoon trade.

European markets slip back
NEW YORK - Stocks traded in a tight range for a fourth day after China reported a jump in inflation. Mixed US economic news also...

US trade deficit shrinks as imports drop
The US trade deficit unexpectedly shrank in January, reflecting a big drop in imports of oil and foreign cars.

EU steel makers complain of iron prices
European steel makers warned on Thursday that big iron ore price increases could slow the region's fragile economic recovery.

Obama issues new call on China over yuan
US President Barack Obama issued a fresh call to China to embrace a "market oriented" exchange rate, saying such a move would help rebalance the...

Brazil's commodities boom produces richest man
Eike Batista has ridden up the commodities boom to become the richest guy in his country. He aims to keep going.

Dubai's spectacular collapse - what have investors learned?
Dubai's spectacular collapse has destroyed vast fortunes and exposed the dangers of doing business in the Gulf. What have investors learned?

Bill Gates No Longer World's Richest Man
Carlos Slim Helu takes No. 1 spot on Forbes World's Billionaires list as a record 164 10-figure titans return to the ranking amid the global...

Gujarat to spend $500m on its NSW mines
Indian-owned coal producer Gujarat NRE Coking Coal Ltd plans to spend $500m expanding its two mines in the Illawarra region of NSW over the next...

Hobart, N Qld head best property markets
Hobart and the sleepy regional north Queensland town of Silkwood were among the best performing property markets over the past decade, research found.

Coal prices set to rise amid confusion
Coal prices are tipped to rise in coming months amid constrained supply and ongoing Chinese demand.

$A lower, jobs stats indicate rate pause
The Australian dollar closed slightly lower after mixed employment figures indicated the central bank would keep interest rates on hold in April.

Stocks to watch
Stocks to watch on the Australian stock exchange at close.

Market Wrap
Across Asia, regional indices are all weaker after inconclusive direction from Wall Street, with higher metal prices and positive reads on the US service sector...

Aussie stocks close lower
The share market closed marginally lower as investors worried that China may move to cool economic growth after a higher than expected inflation figure.

Perth's broadband blackspots 'to go'
Perth's wireless broadband blackspots will be eliminated when Vivid Wireless launches the 4G wireless broadband network, its chairman Ryan Stokes says.

Seven shareholders 'warming to merger'
Seven Network shareholders are warming to Kerry Stokes' $3 billion push to merge the television group with WesTrac, the media mogul's right-hand man says.

China inflation accelerates in February
China's inflation spiked higher in February, adding to pressure on Beijing to prevent overheating and keep China's recovery on track.

CBio gets $1 million milestone payment
CBio has received a $1 million milestone payment from global pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk in relation to the development of CBio's drug, XToll.

Tiger reports rise in passenger numbers
Tiger Airways Holdings Ltd has reported strong growth in passenger numbers and an improvement in load factors for February.

Seven appoints CFO of media assets
Seven Network Ltd has appointed one of its executives to the position of chief financial officer of its media assets.

$A slightly weaker at noon
The Australian dollar was weaker at noon after mixed employment figures suggested the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) might hold interest rates steady in April.

ASX flat at noon, reversing direction
The Australian stock market was flat at noon, reversing early gains as market players absorbed the latest set of employment figures.

Stocks to watch
Stocks of interest on the Australian stock exchange at noon.

Credit Suisse prices $1.1b of 4-yr bonds
Credit Suisse has priced its inaugural Australian bond sale, with the issue of $1.1 billion of four year notes.

Centrebet defends takeover talk
Centrebet International says it first become aware of takeover proposals in February but did not tell the market until this week for reasons of confidentiality.

Cooper Energy hampered by flooding
Cooper Energy says flooding in the Cooper Basin is likely to have an impact on its South Australian operations as roads are cut off and...

Jobless rate edges up in February
The jobless rate edged up to 5.3 per cent in February from a downwardly revised 5.2 per cent in January, with the number of people...

Iron ore and coal exports rise
Australia's exports of iron ore and coal rose to record levels in the December quarter buoyed by strong demand from Japan, Korea and China.

Price pressure fears flat: survey
Consumer inflationary expectations were flat in March, but signs of economic growth meant the proportion of people who expect prices to remain stable declined.

iiNet confirms Netspace takeover talks
Internet service provider iiNet says it is in discussions with rival Netspace about a takeover but no decision has been made to proceed with the...