AAP

Westpac has been handed a second strike on executive pay but dodged a potential board spill despite shareholders roasting the bank over its child exploitation scandal.

The Australian share market has moved lower, with the heavyweight financial sector behind much of the slide, despite a positive lead from Wall Street after the US central bank kept interest rates unchanged.

Oil prices dropped almost 1.0 per cent overnight following a surprise build in US crude inventories and as investors waited to see if a fresh round of tariffs by the US government on Chinese goods would come into force on Sunday.

Gold rose overnight as a deadline for an additional round of US tariffs on Chinese imports loomed with no phase-one deal in sight while palladium again soared to a record on supply woes.

The Australian share market has climbed higher following a report that the Trump administration was set to delay the next round of US tariffs on China that are set to kick in on Sunday.

Westpac is bracing for a barrage of investor angst and the threat of a board spill at an annual general meeting likely to be dominated by the bank's money laundering and child exploitation scandal.

Nickel bounced from a five-month low overnight as investors regarded a sharp downtrend as overdone given an export ban on ore from Indonesia from 2020 is expected to tighten the market.

The Australian share market has risen, shrugging off a weak finish from Wall Street.

Oil prices inched up overnight as OPEC's deal with associated producers last week to deepen output cuts in 2020 continued to provide a floor for prices but US-China trade tensions clouded the demand outlook.

Palladium zoomed past $US1,900 an ounce for the first time ever overnight as a power crisis halted production at mines in major producer South Africa, exacerbating concerns over supply and extending the autocatalyst's record run.

The Australian share market has moved lower, with every sector save mining in retreat ahead of several big macroeconomic risk events.

Reserve Bank of Australia governor Philip Lowe has called out Australia's major banks for consistently charging customers more for international money transfers than their non-bank rivals.

Prime Media says it is consulting with Seven West Media after reports two of its major shareholders would block Seven's takeover of its regional affiliate.

The Australian share market is trading flat as the heavyweight mining and financial sectors move in the opposite direction.

Oil prices fell overnight after data showed Chinese exports declined for a fourth straight month, sending jitters through a market already concerned about damage to global demand by the trade conflict between the US and China.

Palladium soared to a record just shy of the $US1,900 mark overnight while gold prices held steady as uncertainty over US-China trade talks took centre stage ahead of a December 15 deadline for fresh US tariffs.

The Australian share market has closed modestly higher, with a drop in the health care sector trimming some of the index's gains after energy stocks powered ahead in early trade.

Families across Australia are expected to save an average of $97 on their power bills over the next three years.

The alleged biggest public sector theft in Western Australia's history has prompted an independent review into the Department of Communities' financial dealings.

The Australian share market is slightly higher, with a drop in the healthcare sector trimming some of the index's gains after energy stocks powered ahead in early trade.

Austal sweetener in submarine tussle

Oil prices rose more than 1.0 per cent on Friday and posted sharp weekly gains after OPEC and its allies agreed to deepen output cuts by 500,000 barrels per day in early 2020.

Gold slid 1.0 per cent on Friday as strong US jobs data renewed bets the Federal Reserve would stand pat on interest rates and also boosted demand for riskier assets while supply-squeezed palladium soared to a new record high.

The Australian share market has finished a turbulent week on a quiet note as it reclaimed a little bit more of the ground lost during two days of sharp midweek losses.

St Barbara managing director and chief executive Bob Vassie is retiring and will be replaced at the ASX-listed gold miner by Newcrest's Craig Jetson.

Industrial Relations Minister Bill Johnston has unveiled a raft of strategies to crack down on wage theft, while at the same time a national Fair Work sting at capital city hospitality hotspots revealed 75 per cent of businesses were breaking the law.

The Australian share market has inched higher, outperforming Wall Street's tepid gains overnight.

EPA's mine backdown

Oil futures were little changed overnight, supported by expectations that OPEC will deepen output curbs but pressured by the prospect that gas condensate will be excluded from cuts for non-member producers.

Gold edged higher overnight as uncertainty emerging from mixed messages on the US-China trade negotiations offset headwinds from positive economic data out of the United States while deficit-hit palladium extended a record surge.

The Australian share market has rebounded following two days of steep losses, with every sector posting gains.

Scott Morrison is reducing the number of federal government departments and sacking five senior bureaucrats in a major shake-up of the public service.