POLITICS & POLICY

Private Indian firms are reportedly looking into buying opportunities in Australia's natural resources sector.

Queen Elizabeth has arrived in Perth for the Commonwealth leaders' meeting on Friday. Premier Colin Barnett and his wife Lyn, as well as Defence Minister Stephen Smith, welcomed the monarch on tarmac, while a crowd of hundreds, including children, cheered for the Queen when she deplaned with Prince Phillip.

Robust growth in mortgage loans has spurred a 20 per cent hike in cash earnings for the full year to $5.5 billion for the National Australia Bank Ltd., the nation's best-performing banking stock this year.

With a conclusion to the European crisis in sight, it seems there is little in the way of the bulls now.We are calling an open of 4270 (+0.7%) for the Aussie market this morning. Traders will be encouraged by the agreement to recapitalise the banks, news that China is looking to invest in the rescue fund and the positive economic data out of the US. Yesterday's CPI numbers will keep investors optimistic about a rate cut by the RBA next week.

Blue-chip stocks pushed back toward the day's highs as investors grew hopeful that European leaders' commitment to preventing a banking crisis and Chinese purchases of euro-zone debt could help resolve the region's debt woes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 130 points, or 1.1%, to 11837 in recent trading.

MORNING REPORT (7am AEDT)European leaders plan to leverage up the bailout fund (EFSF) ´´several fold´´ to a mooted 1 trillion euros with finance ministers to decide details in November. The EFSF will have the flexibility to deploy two models - risk insurance and special purpose vehicle - simultaneously. Italy has promised to deliver an economic development plan by November 15.

The capital city of Thailand along with 20 provinces has been overcome by what could be the most terrible flooding in Thailand’s history.

Market watchers around the globe are anxiously awaiting a key meeting of European leaders in Brussels tonight, with hopes the European Union summit will be able to come up with a clear and definitive solution to the region's debt crisis. US and European markets tumbled overnight with investors nervous about the outcome, but locally we were spared the sell-off, despite an initial dip at open. Sentiment was instead boosted by benign inflation numbers, which have boosted the chance of a rate cut...

Prince William and Kate Middleton are big “Take That” fans. Will they be present in Gary Barlow’s charity concert on December?

A new book has claimed US President Barack Obama’s actions to reduce nuclear weapons threats have not been commensurate with his rhetoric.

With knee-deep floodwaters enveloping Bangkok, high tides from the sea are pushing the Chao Phraya River's level in the central city to as high as 2.6 metres above mean sea level, above a 2.5-metre concrete floodwall, the chief of the Thail Navy's Hydrographic Department said Wednesday.

If it was his decision, Barry O'Farrell would allow the coalition a conscience on the issue of same-sex marriage, the NSW Premier confirmed on Wednesday.

The Uniform Crime Report Subcommittee of the FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services voted on Oct. 18 to expand its definition of rape, reported Ms. Oct. 19.

Broadband will bring a new boom to the bush, with High-Definition Telepresence set to revolutionise services in regional and rural Australia, according to an independent expert.

Queen Elizabeth arrived in Melbourne today as part of her 11-day Australia visit. This particular tour was primarily for the official opening of the city's new Royal Children's Hospital in Parkville.

Emerging economies could play a bigger role in the collaborative effort of nations to stem the economic crisis even as most of these countries are still cautious of the protracted crisis in Europe and the possibility that it will spread to neighboring regions like wildfire.

The chance of an interest rate cut is now better than ever with Australia's inflation rates easing by 0.6 percent.

Research by carbon analytics firm RepuTex showed that the proposed carbon tax will cost the Standard & Poor's ASX 200 firms $18.7 billion in the decade 2013 through 2022.

The cancellation of the highly-touted EU summit on Wednesday gave rise to speculations that major European powers are in deep disagreement over possible strategies that would hopefully resolve the debt crisis in the region.

The Australian sharemarket is losing ground for the second straight day, with the All Ordinaries index (XAO) down 0.4 pct or 18.5 pts to 4269.2. All sectors are lower with the exception of the defensive healthcare space.

Prices of goods and services in Australia rose by 0.6 per cent in the September quarter, boosted mainly by hikes in electricity, travel, rents, water and property rates.

The death of the infamous tyrant Muammar Qaddafi, who ruled his country for 42 years, has paved the way for Libya’s shift towards political and economic stability.

Queensland moved a stop closer to legalising same-sex unions when Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser introduced on Tuesday the Civil Partnerships Bill.

Tamils in Australia were frustrated after Attorney-General Robert McClelland disallowed war crimes charges against visiting Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to proceed citing his diplomatic immunity.

A U.S.-made nuclear bomb that is 600 times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped in Hiroshima during World War II was dismantled in Texas on Tuesday.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian dollar has opened trading around the USD1.0430 level this morning after another choppy session in the offshore markets.

Two recent decisions highlight the differing outcomes for employees who criticise their employers on social media sites outside working hours. In O'Keefe v Williams Muir's Pty Ltd T/A Troy Williams The Good Guys [2011] FWA 5311, a decision of Fair Work Australia delivered on 11 August 2011, a Townsville worker who was dismissed after making insulting and aggressive comments about his employer on Facebook lost his claim.

In the aftermath of the strongest earthquake to hit their country in over a decade, the government of Turkey has reportedly refused international assistance. The death toll from the quake is already at 279, according to the prime minister's office, while an estimated 1,300 people have been injured.

The online group GetUp has launched a campaign calling on the Australian government to return to its policy position of treating refugees and asylum seekers humanely, as outlined in the 2008 speech by former Immigration Minister Chris Evans, “New Directions in Detention.”