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Retailer

Australian Stock Market Report – Morning December 12, 2014

In US economic data, retail sales rose by 0.7% in November (well ahead of expectations of 0.4%). Excluding gasoline, sales lifted by 0.9%. The gains were broad-based and confirmed a lift in discretionary spending. Core retail sales (excluding automobiles, gasoline, building material and food services) lifted by 0.6%. US jobless claims fell by 3,000 to 294,000 in the past week. US import prices fell 1.5% in November driven by a 6.9% slide in oil prices. US business inventories rose 0.2% in Octobe...

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon December 11, 2014

Men watch the stock board at the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in central Sydney April 21, 2009. Australian stocks fell 2.6 percent on Tuesday, led down by banks and miners, on fresh concerns about the earnings outlook for domestic companies and a
Australian shares ended the day 0.4 per cent lower by the close with some better than expected employment numbers for November helping reduce the losses. The ASX 200 Index managed to remain above 5200pts despite dipping below the key level earlier in the day.

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday December 11, 2014

New York Stock Exchange
Australian shares are falling for the third straight with the ASX 200 Index down 0.6 per cent. The creation of close to three times as many jobs last month however is helping reduce the losses. At its worst levels, the local market was down by 1.35 per cent today.
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A woman walks past a stock quotation board outside a brokerage in Tokyo September 2, 2013. Asian shares climbed to a two-week high on Monday, and the Australian dollar and copper gained, as China said its manufacturing expanded in August at the fastest pa

Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon December 10, 2014

The second half of Wednesday's session saw buyers make some pact on the market, taking advantage of prices that were discounted over the course of the morning. The ASX 200 bottomed out late this morning when it was down by 60 points. By the end of trade this deficit had been wound in and the index ended with a loss of 23 points or 0.45%
A man is reflected on a window of the Australian Securities Exchange building with a board showing the ten most heavily traded stocks for the day in central Sydney June 13, 2013. Australian shares earlier fell 1 percent to a fresh 5-1/2-month low as persi

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday December 10, 2014

Wednesday has seen sellers continue to dictate terms for the ASX 200. The market started the session with a gain of 5 points, although positive territory was a fleeting experience and within the first quarter hour the index was down by 40 points. As lunchtime neared the market showed little evidence of consolidation as it continued to make new lows. The weaker tone locally reflected a similar experience in the US and Europe overnight. European shares fell to a two-week low overnight, led down by...
Kiva robots move inventory at an Amazon fulfilment center in Tracy, California December 1, 2014. Amazon.com Inc has installed more than 15,000 robots across 10 U.S. warehouses, a move that promises to cut operating costs by one-fifth and get packages out

Australian Stock Market Report – Morning December 10, 2014

In US economic data, wholesale inventories rose by 0.4% in October after an upwardly revised 0.4% gain in September (previously reported as a 0.3% rise). Wholesale sales lifted by 0.2% in October. An ISM industry report on the US manufacturing sector expected revenue to rise by 5.6% in 2015, with capital investment expected to lift by 3.7%.
Office workers are reflected as they walk past the Australian Securities Exchange building in central Sydney April 8, 2011. Singapore Exchange Ltd has terminated its $8 billion bid for Australia's ASX Ltd after the Australian government formally rejected

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday December 9, 2014

Australian shares are wiping out all of yesterday's gains with the ASX 200 Index down by 1 per cent. This should come as no surprise following a 4 per cent slump in the oil price, disappointing economic news in China and Japan on Monday, the worst performance for US shares since October overnight and a credit downgrade for Italy.
Dollar notes

Australian Dollar Outlook – December 9, 2014

More pressure for the Australian Dollar as China, Australia's largest trade partner, showed a surprise fall in imports, pushing the trade surplus to a record USD 54.47 billion and oil prices continued to slide.
An investor looks at information displayed on an electronic screen at a brokerage house in Shanghai, December 8, 2014. Asian stocks eked out gains on Monday in wake of much stronger-than-expected U.S. employment numbers, although sobering data highlighted

Global Markets Overview – December 9, 2014

Gains from Friday's jobs numbers were short lived as renewed global growth concerns and declining oil prices came back to haunt global markets. Yesterday's disappointing Japan GDP and China trade balance set off the global growth alarm bells once again.
n office worker walks past an Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) window showing the main losses for the day in central Sydney July 23, 2012. Australian shares slumped 1.7 percent on Monday, the biggest one-day fall in seven weeks, as investors fled from

Australian Stock Market Report – Midday December 8, 2014

Local stocks have started the second week of December on a strong footing. The ASX 200 opened flat, although buyers were waiting in the wings and the market was well supported over the course of the morning. The upward momentum for the market ebbed when the index hit the 5380 but prices remained well supported around these levels into the afternoon.
Men load pieces of steel at a steel factory in Chau Khe village, outside Hanoi December 4, 2014. The World Bank said on Wednesday it has revised its forecast for Vietnam's economic growth this year to 5.6 percent from 5.4 percent previously, after the gov

Global Markets Overview – December 8, 2014

The US dollar has been broadly bid higher as investors react to Friday's jobs numbers. The November payrolls reading showed 321,000 jobs were created and average hourly earnings rose 0.4%, while the unemployment rate was steady at 5.8%. This was the highest number of jobs created in nearly three years and was also accompanied by upward revisions to the previous two months. Heading into next week's Fed meeting, this jobs report is only fuelling the case for the hawks.
Staff walk in front of the Opel Plant during a shift change on its final day of production in Bochum December 5, 2014. European carmaker Opel closed its Bochum plant on Friday.

Australian Stock Market Report – Morning December 8, 2014

In US economic data, non-farm payrolls (employment) rose by 321,000 in November, well above forecasts of job gains of 230,000 and the strongest increase in jobs in almost three years. The jobless rate was unchanged at 5.8% and hourly earnings rose by 0.4% in the month, above forecasts for a 0.2% gain. The trade deficit narrowed from a revised US$43.6 billion deficit to US$43.4bn deficit in October.
Malaysia's former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad talks to reporters at the conclusion of a conference on Yemen's industrial investment potential in the south-eastern Yemeni port city of Mukalla December 23, 2008.

Former PM Says Malaysians Are ‘Too Stupid’ To Run Airline

Kazanah Nasional Berhad, the majority state-owned company that operates the embattled Malaysia Airlines announced on Saturday the appointment of Christopher R Mueller as chief executive airline. His designation aims to boost the business of the air carrier that suffered from two major air tragedies in 2014.

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