BUSINESS

In yet another way of displaying his unorthodox method of running the Roman Catholic Church and the Vatican bureaucracy, Pope Francis fired on Thursday the entire board of the Financial Information Authority (FIA), reports News.com.au.

Canadians in Quebec suffering from dreaded or long-time health afflictions have now been afforded the right to die, as the provincial government on Thursday passed Bill 52, otherwise known as an act respecting end-of-life care.

Apple Inc's bullish streak in the stock market has one major options trader betting big money for the company to break $700 by October. A major investor is putting almost $60 million on Apple shares in of biggest options trades on June 4.

Equities rallied with the S&P and the DAX printing fresh record highs on the back of the ECB decision. The most anticipated event of the week has been and gone and markets are now left to digest the results. While Mario Draghi seems to have thrown absolutely everything at it, markets have not quite had the euphoric reaction many would have expected. This could be largely in part due to the fact that the market already expected a comprehensive package that included a combination of a refinance ra...

The European Central Bank cut interest rates by 10 basis points: the refinancing rate now stands at 0.15%; the deposit rate stands at -0.10%; and the marginal lending rate or emergency borrowing rate stands at 0.40%. The ECB also introduced a package of targeted measures to further boost lending.

Eric Noyrez, CEO of rare earths producer Lynas Corporation (ASX: LYC) resigned from his post and will be replaced by Amanda Lacaze, Reuters reports.

The Australian share market closed lower for a third consecutive session today, with gains in mining players unable to help lift stocks into positive territory. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) closed down 7.1 points or 0.1 per cent to 5419.7 points. Investors also elected to stay on the sidelines ahead of an interest rate decision by the European Central Bank later tonight.

Three new gases have been discovered by scientists to be present up there in the atmosphere that could exacerbate the rate of the world's global warming status.

A new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has identified that the source of infection of the widening Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) virus are the camels in the kingdom.

Bitcoin rallies to 80 per cent as investors find more reasons to jump in

After a flat start this morning, local shares are now firmly in the red following a bigger than expected trade deficit recorded in April. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is down for the third day and for the fifth time in six sessions. It has been a busy week so far with the Reserve Bank keeping rates on hold on Tuesday, the Australian economy growing at a faster than expected pace according to a report yesterday and a big jobs report expected in the U.S. tomorrow night.

Apple Inc.’s iPhones suddenly become cheap with the luxury smartphone from Vertu, the Signature Touch – priced at $10,000.

Canada has a new prostitution law that targets more the buyers of sexual services rather than those who sell it.

It was another mixed session for European equities, while US markets stormed to another record high. The S&P 500 printed an intraday record high of 1928.63 and closed just a touch below this level. Driving the gains was yet another encouraging round of economic data as many had predicted for this week. A much better-than-expected ISM non-manufacturing PMI print actually set the tone overnight, along with more encouraging comments from the Fed's Beige Book. The employment component of the ISM ...

In US economic data, the ISM services index lifted from 55.2 to a nine-month high of 56.3 in May, ahead of the 55.5 consensus forecast. The ADP national employment index showed that 179,000 private sector jobs were created in May, short of the 210,000 consensus forecast. And the trade deficit rose from US$40.4 billion to US$47.24 billion in April, above the consensus estimate of US$40.8 billion.

Due to the slower domestic capacity growth of both Qantas and Virgin Australia, Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce said it would translate into higher fares, fewer discounts and higher load factors.

With his next fight still about 6 months away, Filipino boxing champion Manny Pacquiao is taking the lull in training to sell one of his numerous assets - a Hancock Park mansion in Los Angeles, California.

Like the Reserve Bank of Australia's overnight cash rate decisions, the Fair Work Commission's (FWC) announcement on Wednesday hiking the minimum wage by 3 per cent or $18.70 per week was a damn if you do, damn if you don't situation for the federal government. Labour unions are not happy at the increase they consider measly, while employers warn the new minimum salary of $640.90 per week by July 1 would lead to job cuts.

Apple Inc. continues its award-winning streak climbing one spot higher in the 2014 Fortune 500 rankings.

The Australian share market was sold off again on Wednesday, despite solid economic growth figures for the March quarter.

Indonesia's Mount Sangeang Api continues to spew ash clouds, but it had dissipated to levels considered safe for planes. According to Kristianto of the Eastern Indonesian division of the geological agency, Sangean Api spewed white ash to heights of one kilometre on Monday.

Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of crippled Fukushima power plant, has started constructing a huge underground ice wall around the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant. This plan is seen to control and manage the production of toxic water at the complex devastated by a tsunami that was triggered by a magnitude 9 earthquake in March 2011.

Lachlan Wheeler, CEO of an Australian health software company, HealthKit, is not pleased that Apple used his company’s name for its ‘brand new health app’.

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) announced on Tuesday the result of its yearly review of Australia's minimum wage. The commission increased the minimum wage by 3 per cent or $18.70 per week, ABC reported.

One of chemotherapy's major side effects includes infertility in both men and women of child-bearing age. This is trying and very difficult for individuals who want to be able to have children after undergoing treatment. Good news is that a new breast cancer drug may be able to prevent women from becoming infertile due to cancer treatment.

The Australian sharemarket is falling for the second day and for the fourth time in five trading days. U.S. stocks snapped a three day win streak, giving the market a negative lead today. Despite a 0.5 per cent rise in the iron ore price, the metal's recent weakness has made the miners less attractive to investors.

Australia's economy is back on a growth path after it registered a 1.1 per cent gross domestic products (GDP) growth rate for the first quarter of 2013, The Australian reports.

New Zealand experts have warned the Australian government to not follow the island nation's welfare system. The Kiwi economists said New Zealand's welfare cuts have created "big holes" as the country is dealing with child poverty.

Apple Inc. revised its set of App Store Review Guidelines opening its door to virtual currencies