BUSINESS

The Australian Dollar reached highs near 1.0180 on Friday however almost a cent was wiped from the currency pair as the recent risk rally lost steam during Friday's European session.

US payrolls rose by 151,000 in October, well ahead of expectations for jobs growth of 60,000.

Travelers flying on Qantas Air will experience delays as the company shuffles its fleet to cover the grounded A380s, Qantas spokesman Simon Rushton said.

After receiving a very positive lead from Wall Street overnight, our market maintained its early rally to close 1.1pct or 55.4pts stronger to 4872.9.

The six-month extension again required for the completion of the problem-plagued $4.4 billion Oakajee port and rail project in Western Australia adds up to the mounting woes of the proposed deepwater port, following numerous delays in the past.

The Australian share market climbed over one per cent to a seven month high as investors snapped up resources stocks amid higher metals prices and a greater appetite for riskier assets.

Qantas moved swiftly to ground its entire fleet of A380 aircrafts following the scary episode in Singapore where a plane suffered a blown engine after its take off, endangering the lives of passengers and crews of flight en route to Australia.

Passengers from Qantas Airbus A380, the same carrier where Oprah Winfrey next month was to have flown hundreds of US audience members in a John Travolta-piloted down under trip, have left for Australia on relief flights.

South Australia is all set for a bumper season as the state government announced that farmers in the region would harvest a total of 9.62 million tonnes, the biggest crop yield ever for the state since the 9.4 million tonnes recorded in 2001.

The Australian sharemarket is rallying strongly today, completely wiping out yesterday's slight falls.

Foreign banking institutions in Australia are eager to take advantage of a more competitive environment in the country's financial sector that the Federal government is considering to implement.

Huge numbers of disappointed Commonwealth Bank (ASX: CBA) customers have taken to the Internet to vent their outrage over the 'unfair' variable interest rate hike of 0.45 per cent this week.

Queensland mining mogul Clive Palmer could go ahead with his takeover plans for Gladstone Pacific Nickel Ltd, according to the federal government, who declared on Friday that it would not get in the way of the brewing acquisition.

Ten Network Holdings Ltd. (TEN.AU) chairman Nick Falloon have agreed to set down from his post to resolve pending issues with new shareholder James Packer.

Australia's construction industry remained damp in October largely due to persistent weakness in activity and new orders, although the rate of contraction was less than the previous month, a survey has found.

Weeks after the meltdown of its iron ore partnership deal with Rio Tinto Ltd, BHP Billiton suffered another blow on Thursday when the Canadian government affirmed the earlier dumping of the mining giant’s $40 billion takeover proposal for Potash Corporation by the provincial government of Saskatchewan.

The AUD has opened higher this morning, touching a fresh post float high early.

U.S. stocks rallied to their highest level since their September 2008 plunge during the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers as investors applauded the Federal Reserve's latest effort to stimulate the struggling economy.

The Australian Dollar managed to hang onto its gains above parity yesterday despite softer-than-expected retail sales data. Australian retail sales rose just 0.3 per cent in September reducing expectations as to the pace of rate hikes in 2011.

US jobless claims rose by a larger than expected 20,000 to a seasonally adjusted 457,000 in the last week.

Qantas Airways Ltd. and engine makers Rolls-Royce Group Plc with Airbus SAS have started an investigation of the malfunctioning plane engine that put 459 people in danger yesterday.

A Qantas A380 plane has been forced to fly back to Singapore's Changi Airport after pilots found one of its engines malfunctioning and were forced to shut down.

The Australian share market closed at its highest level since late April as traders reacted positively to the potential blocking of BHP Billiton's $40 billion Canadian fertiliser bid.

Broadband provider Optus was found guilty of violating the provisions of the country’s Trade Practices Act as a Federal Court determined that the telco firm deceived and misled consumers during its campaign blitz that commenced April this year.

Australian stocks ended at a fresh six month closing high today, as the US stimulus package boosted investor sentiment around the region. Qantas (QAN) shares were also in focus after one of the airline's A380 planes suffered a mid-air emergency before landing safely in Singapore.

Australian retailers are increasingly concerned of the sector's persistent weakness even during traditional shopping periods.

The weak US dollar will continue to fuel the higher prices of commodities considered as the next safest forms of investment.

Travellers can look forward for a much better access to Brisbane Airport as work on the bypass road to the terminal has been progressing well and first stage of the project should be unveiled within the next few days.

Australian consumers are much less likely to trust opinions of financial services providers than those of non experts, new research has revealed.