Australian shares have slumped at the start of the new trading week, with declines widespread as local markets follow Wall Street lower amid fresh uncertainty over US-China trade.
Wall Street has tumbled in a broad sell-off led by declines in big internet and technology shares, and the benchmark S&P 500 index posted its biggest weekly percentage drop since March as concerns over US-China trade tensions and interest rates convulsed Wall Street.
Oil prices ended the week more than two per cent higher after OPEC members and allies like Russia agreed to reduce output to drain global fuel inventories and support the market, but the gains were
Gold hit a five-month peak as the dollar slid following weaker-than-expected US jobs data, which added to expectations that the US Federal Reserve may go slow on interest rate hikes next year.
The Australian share market has closed higher due to strong gains from supermarket and healthcare stocks, offsetting losses to the commodity-related sectors as investors moved away from volatile shares.
Two major arts companies have today announced new leadership, with the WA Symphony Orchestra appointing Mark Coughlan as chief executive and the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts naming David Shirley as executive dean.
Melbourne-based executive Lisa Rodgers has been appointed director general of the Department of Education, making her the fifth woman to be appointed to a director general role in Western Australia this year.
The Australian share market has lifted at the open with the healthcare and financial sectors among the best early performers as the bourse shrugs off a choppy Wall Street session and subdued oil prices.
Gold has risen to near a five-month peak on a weaker dollar and on expectations the pace of US interest rate hikes will slow, with the bullion also getting support from falling equities.
Oil fell about three per cent in choppy overnight trade after OPEC and allied exporting countries ended a meeting without announcing a decision to cut crude output, and prepared to debate the matter the next day.
US stocks have closed slightly lower, but well above their session lows, as the arrest of a Chinese technology executive fanned fears of US-China tensions over trade, while some beaten-up big technology and internet shares posted gains.
The Australian share market closed lower, as nervousness about the US economy and the tentative trade stalemate between China and the US weighed on stocks.
Australian shares have slipped at the open, dragged lower by heavyweight mining and banking stocks, after Wall Street took the session off to mark the funeral of former US President George Bush Sr.
Global stocks have fallen, plagued by a flattening yield curve that sparked concerns about an economic slowdown in the United States and weakening expectations of a lasting US-China trade truce, while the US dollar steadied.
Gold has slipped on expectations of more interest rate hikes following remarks from a US Federal Reserve official and as some investors booked profits after prices hit their highest in more than five weeks.
Oil prices dipped overnight ahead of a meeting of the world's biggest exporters, who will discuss cutting output to help shore up prices and curb excess supply.
The Australian share market has finished the day almost one per cent lower, in a broad-based sell-off sparked by worries there won't be a US-China trade truce.
Perth-based digital agency Firefly360 has boosted staff numbers in preparation for an increase in work next year, adding three experienced members to its team.
Australian shares have plunged at the open after a dismal overnight session on Wall Street, where trade anxieties flared and fears of a growth slowdown mounted.
Wall Street has tumbled more than 3 per cent, led lower by bank and industrial shares, as the US bond market sent unsettling signs about economic growth and investors worried anew about global trade.
Oil prices pared gains in a volatile trade overnight as fears flared that demand would stall due to a trade war between the US and China, and that Russia remained a stumbling block to a deal to cut global crude supply.
Nearly 1,000 people attended the funeral of the late Stan Perron this afternoon, with his daughter Elizabeth Perron promising to maintain his legacy as a great philanthropist.
The Australian share market suffered near-across the board losses as the positive sentiment from the trade truce brokered at the G20 summit dissipates.
Valmec has secured $25 million worth of construction contracts, including at Mineral Resources' Wodgina project, while fellow local contractor Weststar Industrial was awarded a $4 million contract at Rio Tinto's West Angelas mine near Newman.
Oil prices jumped nearly four per cent after the United States and China agreed to a 90-day truce in a trade dispute and Canada's Alberta province ordered a production cut, while exporter group OPEC looked set to reduce supply.
Gold gained one per cent overnight, hitting its highest in more than three weeks, boosted by a sell-off in the dollar after the United States and China called a truce on fresh trade tariffs for 90 days.
