MARKETS

The key takeout from today's trade is that opportunistic buyers are not being bullied by the selling fraternity. In recent days the headlines from Washington have given sellers the edge although, they have only been prepared to chance their arm so far. The early session provide a good case study of this today.

Australian stocks are back in the red in early trade on Thursday, despite gains made on blue chip stocks in New York overnight. The US Dow Jones Index closed in positive territory after President Obama nominated current US Federal Reserve Vice-Chair Janet Yellen to succeed Ben Bernanke as Fed Chief when his term ends in January 2014. If endorsed by the Senate, Yellen will become the first female Federal Reserve Chair in the bank's 100 year history.

By Jonathan BarrattWe have been focused on the reasons as to why gold has not benefitted from US fiscal mismanagement.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 26 points or 0.2% while the S&P gained a point to 1656 as the Nasdaq fell 0.

One of the more valuable aspects of the current market atmospherics is to see how the market performs when dealing with the headwinds being generated by US politics. Today, and not for the first time, the local index showed some mettle. Have been handed a poor finish on Wall St, the market started under duress, losing as much as 30 points in the first hour of trade. From that point however buyers slowly began to reel in the deficit. By the early part of the afternoon the market peaked at its bes...

The Australian sharemarket is down for the fourth straight day, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) down 0.1 per cent. The US government shutdown has entered day eight and we're only nine days away from the debt ceiling deadline (US will run out of cash to keep economy running unless ceiling raised).

By Peter Switzer, Switzer Super ReportOne of the great tragedies of US history was the Hindenburg disaster.

By Kathleen Brooks, Research Director UK EMEA, FOREX.comRumours that the US Congress would reach a deal to extend the debt ceiling, albeit only for a few weeks, ended up being hopeless optimism, after the Republicans held a press conference with the hash tag #letstalk in the background.

By Greg PeelThe Dow fell 159 points or 1.1% while the S&P lost 1.2% to 1655 and the Nasdaq dropped 1.9%.

The Australian sharemarket finished lower for the third consecutive session, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) falling by approximately 0.2 per cent.

For the first time ever, Japan Air line placed a deal with Airbus. Airbus, Giant Aircraft maker has too agreed with the deal for 31 long-haul A350 jetliners having a price of $9.75 billion. The agreement on Monday predicts that the deliveries will start in 2019 and new planes will be rolled over six years.

Samsung Electronics Co., the top smart phone maker, came in to existence in 1938. It tried its hand in diversified branches such as construction, textiles, insurance, securities and retail.

Australian stocks remain in the red for a third consecutive trading session, after Wall Street closed lower overnight on budget concerns. The US government shutdown has now entered its seventh trading day, or second week, and is starting to rattle investor sentiment. The Bank of America added to investor worries over the weekend by downgrading its fourth quarter US GDP (economic growth) forecast from 2.5 per cent to 2 per cent.

Petronas, the state-owned oil and gas company in Malaysia, said on Monday that it will invest $36 billion in Canada. The announcement came at the same time that Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper was attending in Bali, Indonesia a gathering of Asian leaders.

By Greg PeelActivity in spot uranium remains limited while term market interest is building. The uranium term market is what we might call the "real" market, featuring global nuclear utilities arranging delivery contracts over periods of time on the buy-side and actual producers of uranium on the se...

By Greg PeelThe Dow fell 136 points or 0.9% while the S&P lost 0.9% to 1676 and the Nasdaq fell 0.8%.Last week House Speaker John Boehner indicated he would not prevent a debt ceiling increase but that he would be looking for spending concessions from the Democrat Administration.

By Greg PeelAre cracks appearing in the Republican resolve?The Republicans have been stoic in their determination to date to undermine Obamacare, but have perhaps been surprised at just how stubborn the president has been on the other side.

The impasse over US budget talks continues in the U.S. Democrats and Republicans appear no closer to a budget deal on the third day of the federal government shutdown. Up to 800,000 federal workers have been sent home without pay. As a result the Aussie dollar traded at its highest level in a week on Friday on the back of a weakening US dollar.

The Australian stock market has seen selling from the outset, in line with most global stock indices in the last day. Investors continue to give US politician the benefit of the doubt, expecting a timely resolution to the budget impasse. However, if there are no meaningful signs of progress over the weekend market sentiment will likely shift next week. Funding the government's activities is a sideshow compared to the extension debt ceiling. If US lawmakers fail on this count, a debt default w...

By Rudi Filapek-Vandyck, Editor FNArenaI joined Twitter. Not because I am curious what this celebrity has to say about her kids, or to read that another one is waiting for a connecting flight, impatiently.

By Greg PeelThe Dow fell 136 points or 0.9% to be just below 15,000, while the S&P lost 0.9% to 1678 and the Nasdaq dropped 1.

The Australian share market managed a second session of gains today, despite worries about the US budget impasse and falls on most global markets overnight.

The Australian share market is moving higher for a second straight session, despite weakness on Wall Street overnight as the US government shutdown entered its second day. This morning our time, US President Obama and Congress have been holding talks in an effort to reach agreement over the budget impasse.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed down 58 points or 0.4% while the S&P fell 0.1% to 1693 and the Nasdaq was flat.

The themes seen in early trade remained in place this afternoon. Volumes remained low as investors remained wary of US political developments.

The Australian stock market pushed slightly higher at the open, following gains in US and European markets informed by hopes that the partial United States government shutdown will not seriously harm the economy.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 62 points or 0.4% while the S&P gained 0.8% to 1695 as the Nasdaq rose 1.

The Australian share market has closed modestly lower on what was a very busy day for investors around the globe.

The Australian share market is trading slightly firmer at lunchtime in the East, as US lawmakers scramble to make an 11th hour agreement on budget changes ahead of the October 1 deadline. If changes can't be agreed, there will be a shutdown of many (mainly non-essential) US government services. The looming deadline impacted offshore trade overnight, sending the Dow Jones Index down 0.8 per cent.