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A recovery in new home building is set to stall in 2011, according to a report.

The Housing Industry Association, which represents home builders, said housing starts are likely to fall 3% in 2011, reversing part of the expected 20% rise in 2010, ensuring the industry continues to build homes at a rate far below what is being demanded.

In its quarterly National Outlook Report it said Australia needs to build over 190,000 dwellings in 2010 alone to meet underlying demand. Current estimates put total building at 165,940 houses. 

US blue-chip stocks slipped on Friday, weighed down by consumer-staples companies such as Coca-Cola as investors grew more concerned about consumer spending. However, the Standard & Poor's 500 index eked out a small gain, led by financial stocks including JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America, as an agreement on a financial-regulation overhaul removed some of the uncertainty that had been weighing on the sector.

US stocks skidded lower on Thursday as uncertainty over the final shape of the financial-overhaul bill weighed on JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America and disappointing earnings from Bed Bath & Beyond sent a wide swath of retail stocks tumbling.

Falling for a fourth straight session, the Standard & Poor's 500-share index posted its longest losing streak in seven weeks, since the four-day period that ended May 7. The S&P 500 fell 18.35 points (1.68%) to 1,073.69.

Business confidence edged down in the second quarter of 2010 compared with the previous quarter, a private sector survey showed.

The Westpac Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry expected composite index fell to 56.6 from 57 in the first quarter. In the prior survey, expectations had been for a reading of 64.7 for the second quarter.

US blue-chip stocks eked out a tiny gain on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates at record lows, supporting a rise in JP Morgan Chase, but energy companies Chevron and Exxon slid as oil-prices fell.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 4.92 points (0.05%) to 10,298.4, paring an early jump after the Fed's statement prompted the euro to strengthen.

Energy stocks including Chevron, Halliburton and Schlumberger led US stocks broadly lower on Tuesday after the White House vowed to appeal a judge's decision to block the six-month moratorium on new deepwater drilling projects.

A pledge from China to make its exchange rate more flexible boosted materials companies including Alcoa and United States Steel and industrials such as 3M, but gains elsewhere fizzled out as a cut to BNP Paribas's debt rating reminded investors of Europe's economic woes.

US stocks edged higher on Friday as a report from Caterpillar of strong machine sales in Asia boosted other companies with global operations, although a resolution to the sparring between Walgreen and CVS Caremark weighed on some health-care companies that were expected to benefit from the dispute.

US stocks rose on a late rally that came despite disappointing US economic data, as gains in the euro after a successful Spanish bond auction helped lift companies that export to Europe, including Caterpillar, Kraft and Chevron.

Annual wage rises under all enterprise agreements struck in the fourth quarter of 2009 averaged 4%, up from a revised 3.6% in the third quarter, the Department of Employment said.

In the private sector, annual wage rises under enterprise agreements certified in the fourth quarter averaged 3.9%, up from a revised 3.7% in the third quarter. For public sector employees, the average annual wage increase under enterprise agreements struck in the three months to Dec. 31 was 4.2%, up from a revised 3.6% in the third quarter.