BUSINESS

Australian retail sales slumped 0.5 per cent to a seasonally adjusted $20.46 billion in March from $20.55bn in February and rose from $20bn a year earlier, according to official national figures released today. Economists expected a 0.5 per cent rise in sales for March.

Australians are believed to be paying much higher costs for supermarket goods in comparison to other countries. This suggestion circulated as a result of an international survey conducted by 7News.

By Greg PeelIn February, Australian retail sales rose 0.8% (revised up from 0.5%) which surprised economists at the time but then replacement purchases in the wake of the Queensland floods were the clear driver.

- Coca-Cola Amatil 1H guidance slightly disappointing- Volumes and revenues solid, costs higher- Guidance historically conservative, brokers remain broadly positiveBy Chris ShawCoca-Cola Amatil ((CCL)) held its annual general meeting yesterday and at the meeting offered initial earnings guidance for...

New home loan borrowers are lapping up at an increasing rate the range of ongoing discount products on offer, according to Australia’s largest independently owned mortgage broker.

A big pullback in commodity markets sparked a sell off in the commodity currencies overnight, with the AUD falling back below USD1.0800.

Mr McKellar said the strong Australian dollar was underpinning record levels of car affordability.

Riskdata, the leading provider of risk management solutions to the alternative investment marketplace, announces that it has launched its Portfolio Designer offering. This revolutionary portfolio construction solution is the first one enabling the delivery of robust extreme risk diversification, based on limits for market, liquidity and operational risk, and integrating the portfolio manager's views on markets and assets.

Pulse Capital Partners, LLC , which identifies and partners with next generation hedge fund managers to institutionalize and accelerate their growth, announced a partnership with Hong Kong-based asset manager Ardon Capital Management Ltd. to launch an Asia-focused event-driven fund. The new fund will be called the Pulse-Ardon Asia Fund and is anticipated to launch in July 2011.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed down 83 points or 0.7% while the S&P lost 0.7% to 1347 and the Nasdaq fell 0.

Electronic Arts Inc. on Tuesday announced an agreement to acquire mobile game developer Firemint Pty Ltd. for an undisclosed amount.

Westpac Banking Corp. 's cash earnings for the six months ended March 31 increased 7% from a year earlier to A$3.2 billion. Statutory net profit for the first half rose 38% to A$3.96 billion.

Automatic Data Processing today reported that private sector jobs increased by 179,000 in April. That was well off the 200,000 new jobs that a consensus of economists' had earlier forecast and, worse, a significant decline of 22,000 jobs from March's 201,000 newly created positions.

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT)'s Bing will be the default search engine and map application on Research In Motion Ltd. (RIM)'s BlackBerry smartphones, the software maker announced Tuesday.

The Philippines’ leading mall developer, SM Prime Holdings, has announced plans for the construction of its biggest mall ever – it will be built in China.

UMB Fund Services, Inc. (UMBFS) announces that its alternative investments division, JD Clark & Company (JD Clark), has been selected to provide alternative investment administration services for Luminous Capital.

Virgin is flying high under a new banner. After changing its name to Virgin Australia, the carrier has announced it has acquired new planes with new interior designs that promise a complete new "magical" experience.

The Australian government on Wednesday granted Chi-X the license to operate an alternative securities exchange in Australia, effectively ending the 20-year monopoly of the ASX Group Ltd. Chi-X is owned by Nomura.

The world's largest listed hedge fund Man Group plc announces the successful launch of an AHL open-ended fund in Japan, Nomura Global Trend, which has raised US$1.5 billion. The fund began trading at the end of April 2011.

Ermitage has entered into a contractual agreement with Nexar Capital Group, whereby Nexar will acquire Ermitage Limited from Caledonia Investments plc.

Advanced Capital, the leading European alternative investment specialist, headed up by innovative financier Robert Tomei, and award winning European hedge fund incubator, IMQubator, has announced a €50million joint seed investment into the new mCapital European & Asian Special Situations Fund.

Galena Asset Management Ltd („Galena‟) has restructured the Galena Energy Fund as of January 2011. The Geneva-based Energy Fund was seeded by Trafigura group, the parent company, in April 2009 with 50M$. The group committed another 50M$ early in January 2010.

U.S. blue-chip stocks finished virtually unchanged as investors dumped energy and materials stocks and headed for the safety of bonds and telecommunications companies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished just 0.15 point higher at 12807.51, while the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index shed 4.60 points, or 0.34%, to 1356.62.

- The recent acquisition expands Global Construction's labour force- Earnings guidance revised higher by company management- DJ Carmichael rates stock a Buy, lifts forecasts and price targetBy Chris ShawBased in Western Australia, Global Construction Services ((GCS)) operates in the residential, com...

By Greg PeelThey don't call it Chinese water torture for nothing, as the painstakingly slow pace of Chinese monetary policy tightening and currency revaluation over the past decade has left many a global observer screaming with frustration.

The Westpac Group (ASX: WBC) today announced a solid result for the half year to 31 March 2011, with cash earnings per share of 105.6 cents increasing 6 per cent compared to the six months to 31 March 2010.

- ERA proposes increased capex to deal with water issues- Valuations and earnings estimates adjusted lower- Broker opinions and targets remain dividedBy Chris ShawWith production being impacted by abnormally heavy rain in recent years, uranium producer Energy Resources of Australia ((ERA)) is lookin...

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed unchanged but the S&P fell 0.3% and the Nasdaq dropped 0.7%.India surprised markets yesterday by raising its cash rate.

Australia''s currency declined very slightly yesterday for the first time in five days as there was a general move back into the US based currency.