Vittorio Hernandez

The US trade deficit narrowed marginally from $45.63 billion to $45.61 billion in August. US exports fell 0.1pct while imports were flat. The trade gap with China widened to a record $29 billion in August. US jobless claims fell by 1,000 to 404,000 in the past week. The four-week moving average of claims (considered a better measure of labour market trends) fell by 7,000 to 408,000.

As more consumers shift to upgrades of modern electronic devices such as tablet computers and smartphones from laptops and 3G phones, more companies are launching their own versions of the devices in a bid to get a slice of the growing market - notwithstanding risking a lawsuit from Apple.

The approval on Wednesday of the controversial carbon tax by the Australia's House of Commons has generated debate even before the measure becomes a law. A day after the carbon tax bill won in a narrow voting, some people have started to collect the tax ahead of the bill becoming a law.

As Australia's population ages, the number of residents suffering from dementia is expected to reach 385,000 patients in 2021.

Macquarie Telecom, Fujitsu, Infoplex and VMware have formed the OzHub, a national cloud council which aims to promote cloud computing to enterprises, small businesses, consumers and governments in Australia.

Anti-carbon tax protests marked the first day after the Labor government passed the controversial measure. Members of the public gallery loudly chanted making the question hour proceedings at times inaudible.

Qantas canceled 14 domestic flights and delayed another 30 trips on Thursday morning as the baggage handlers and ground crew walked off their jobs for two hours at 7 a.m.

Minutes from the last US Federal Reserve meeting highlighted that Fed officials discussed a fresh round of bond purchases among other tools to stimulate activity. However officials seemed to be holding back from a third round of QE. The minutes reiterated that the Fed had become a lot more concerned about the economic outlook.

The recent rally on the share market came to an end today, with the share market posting its first loss in six sessions. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) eased by ..pts or ..pct to ... while the S&P/ASX 200 Index (XJO) fell ..pts or ..pct to .. The XAO gained 8.9pct between last Tuesday and yesterday's close.

High-tech devices outnumber people in the United States, the industry group CTIA reported Tuesday. Wireless subscriber connections reached 327.6 million, surpassing for the first time the U.S. population of 315.5 million.

Australia Post registered a net profit of $241 million for the year that ended June, up compared to the $90 million net profit for the same period last year.

Although there was a drop in phone and on-course betting, Australian wagering and gaming company Tabcorp Holdings logged an 18 per cent hike in its online betting revenue in the past year.

The Australian sharemarket is pulling back for the first time this week, with the All Ordinaries index (XAO) down 1 pct or 42.2 pts to 4246.6. Most sectors are lower, with the miners the worst performers in percentage terms.

U.S. President Barack Obama has not given up the fight to create 1.9 million more jobs in the country despite the Republican block of his $447-billion jobs bill in the Senate on Tuesday night.

Australians' love for playing video games continues even if they have moved from their teens into adulthood. They have been playing video games for at least two decades, which explains why a new study found that 92 per cent of Australian households are into video games.

Labor's carbon tax measure is expected to be passed on Wednesday morning by the House of Representatives after the party has secured sufficient support for Clean Energy Future Bill 2011 and 17 associated Bills 74-72.

The Australian dollar continued to trade in the USD 0.9900-1.0000 range overnight, and is currently trading close to USD0.9950.

U.S. stocks bounced between small gains and losses a day after the Dow Jones Industrial Average posted its biggest advance in two months. The Dow shed 16 points, or 0.1%, to 11417, in Tuesday afternoon trading, following a 330-point surge Monday.

US chain store sales rose by 4.8 per cent in the latest week compared with a year earlier according to Redbook Research but sales so far in October were down 0.6 per cent on September.

The local share market made it five wins in a row today, notching up the longest string of advances since early April. Hopes European leaders are closer to a long-lasting solution to the sovereign debt crisis gave investors a positive offshore lead, while sentiment was also boosted by a pick-up in business conditions and confidence, and ahead of the US reporting season which kicks off tonight. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) rose 26.5pts or 0.6pct to 4288.8 while the S&P/ASX 200 Index (XJO) added...

Iron ore miner Sundance Resources said on Tuesday that it expects no delay in the Foreign Investment Review Board's (FIRB) decision on the $1.65-billion takeover bid by China's Sichuan Hanlong Mining.

A study by researchers at the University of Eastern Finland warned of higher death risks among older women taking multivitamins.

The Australian sharemarket is gaining for the fifth straight day with the All Ordinaries index (XAO) up 0.6 pct or 24.1 pts to 4286.4. Despite the improvement, shares gave away some of their earlier gains as the XAO was up 1 pct after half an hour of trade.

The Australian dollar continued to gain near parity with the U.S. currency amid the eurozone currency problems, but this new trend undermines the prospect of a benchmark rate cut anticipated by some market analysts.

Unlike other post offices which refuse to adapt to information technology, Australia Post is instead riding on the online shopping trend to boost its income.

Although the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA) cancelled on Monday its planned four-hour strikes, Qantas's labor problems with unions are far from over.

Australian banks are on a cost-cutting mode in a bid to pare expenditures that soared during the credit and housing boom.

Mexican drug cartels, including the Sinaloa Cartel, have entered Australia and is now operating in the country, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administrator Chief of Intelligence Rodney Benson told the U.S. Congress last week.

Chances of survival for lung cancer patients may go up with the findings of a joint team of Australian and American researchers who just found the secret of why the ailment regenerates despite chemotherapy.