An index of the economy grew at an annualised rate of 8.7% in March, up from 7.7% growth in February. The index of where the economy is headed in the next three to nine months is compiled monthly by Westpac and Melbourne University's Institute of Applied Economic & Social Research.
US blue-chip stocks fell on Tuesday, with Chevron and Exxon Mobil among the decliners as crude-oil futures slipped. But the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index edged into positive territory after materials companies including Alcoa and consumer-discretionary stocks such as Home Depot staged late rallies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 22.82 points (0.23%) to 10,043.75. With crude-oil futures falling to below $69 a barrel, Chevron lost 87 cents (1.2%) to $72.57, while Exxon Mobil slipped 48 cents (0.8%) to $59.71.
The government said it would buy residential mortgage-backed securities at tighter spreads in an effort to kick-start recently stalled issuance and help smaller lenders better compete on home loan origination with the ever-growing big banks. Since late 2007 the government has bought more than $8bn of mortgage-backed securities from home loan lenders to keep the securitisation market open and provide funding for smaller operators.
US stocks fell on Monday, led by financial stocks, including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and American Express, as the seizure of a Spanish bank reignited concerns about the euro zone's financial system, while investors continue to fret over the potential impact of a regulatory overhaul in the US.
US stocks closed higher on Friday, led by financial companies including JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and American Express after the US Senate passed a financial overhaul bill.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 125.38 points (1.25%) to 10,193.39. For the week, the measure fell 4.02%, its largest weekly drop since the week ended May 7, the day after the so-called flash crash. The Dow is now off 2.25% for the year to date.
The dollar's fall Thursday at its fastest pace since the market carnage of late 2008 pushed the currency to a more-than-eight-month low against its US counterpart, spurring talk the central bank may yet step in if the slide continues.
At its lowest, the Aussie was down more than 2.5% against the US dollar and is now down 11% since May 3. During its fall, it touched its lowest level since September 2009 at US$0.8256, down from a recent high in mid-April of US$0.9382. By late in the trading day it was at US$0.8355.
Offshore selling pummelled the Australian share market for a fifth consecutive day Thursday as the Australian dollar plunged on concerns about European debt, China's economic outlook and the proposed resource super profits tax. Geopolitical tensions fuelled selling, after a team of international investigators concluded that a North Korean torpedo sank a South Korean warship on March 26.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed down 70.6 points, or 1.6%, at a ninemonth low of 4316.5 in volatile trading.
Worries over the potential impact of the euro zone on the global economy sent US stocks tumbling on Thursday into the first correction of the bull market that began in March 2009. Bank of America, Alcoa and General Electric were among the stocks caught in the market's downdraft.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 376.36 points (3.60%) to 10,068.01, the measure's biggest point drop since Feb. 10, 2009, and largest percentage drop since March 5, 2009. The Dow is now at its lowest point since Feb. 10 of this year, and is in negative territory for the year, down 3.45%.
US stocks fell on Wednesday, led by such industrial companies as Caterpillar, Boeing and 3M as investors worried that the weak euro could hurt the profits of companies that do business in the euro zone. The declines wiped out the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index's gain for the year.
In May, consumer confidence recorded its biggest fall since the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers, sending a strong signal that rapid interest rate increases since late 2009 have started to squeeze the economy. But data on wages growth also showed pressures are building steadily in the labour market.
Wages grew in the first quarter of 2010 at their fastest pace since the end of 2008. Still, financial markets are now expecting an extended pause in interest rates with the next hike likely in 2011.