AAP

A $2.4 billion government package will keep Whyalla's steelworks running and its debts paid while a new owner is found, after it was placed in administration.

The S&P 500 added to its record as US stock indexes drifted through a quiet Wednesday overnight on Wall Street.

The ASX200 was down 0.3 per cent at midday, on track for its third day of losses amid more weakness from the financial sector.

US stocks crept to a record overnight as the S&P 500 nudged higher after a quiet Tuesday of trading.

The ASX200 has finished 0.7 per cent lower, extending its losses after the Reserve Bank cut rates while cautioning it might not do so again anytime soon.

Australia's economy is recovering thanks to the government's measures but an interest rate call is ultimately out of its hands, the prime minister says.

The ASX200 fell 0.2 per cent, with the financial sector doing especially poorly after disappointing earnings from Westpac and Bendigo and Adelaide.

Peter Dutton appears to be kicking with the wind behind his back, with multiple opinion polls showing the Albanese government could be on the nose with voters as an election nears.

The local share market has hit a new record for a third day this week, despite double-digit losses for Cochlear and AMP following disappointing earnings results.

US stocks rallied to the brink of a record overnight after more companies reported bigger profits than expected.

The ASX200 has finished marginally higher at its best-ever level and set an intraday record amid a spate of corporate earnings reports.

Several US stocks fell overnight after a report showed inflation is unexpectedly worsening for Americans.

A late rally has carried the local share market into uncharted territory after Commonwealth Bank, Suncorp, AGL and Computershare all delivered better-than-expected first-half earnings.

The federal government could throw a lifeline to Rex Airlines if a potential buyer isn't prepared to commit to providing value and ongoing regional services.

Wall Street held relatively firm overnight following president Donald Trump's latest tariff escalation and after the Federal Reserve hinted interest rates may not change for a while.

The ASX200 ended the day about where it started, with strong gains for goldminers as the yellow metal breached $US2,900 an ounce for the first time.

US stocks rose overnight as Wall Street took president Donald Trump's latest threat on tariffs in stride.

The ASX200 has fallen after US President Donald Trump said he would impose new levies on steel and aluminium imports.

All three US stock indexes closed lower on Friday after President Donald Trump said he plans to announce reciprocal tariffs on many countries next week, following weak jobs and consumer sentiment data.

The ASX200 has finished Friday down 0.1 per cent to close out the week slightly in the red after starting it with a big plunge.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq ended higher overnight while the Dow closed lower after a choppy trading session.

The ASX200 rose 1.2 per cent, closing in on a return to all-time record territory.

Wall Street drifted higher overnight as gains for most stocks outweighed drops for Alphabet and some other big-name companies following their latest profit reports.

The local sharemarket has finished higher, bouncing back somewhat from Monday's selloff prompted by Donald Trump's nascent trade war.

Calm returned to Wall Street overnight, and tech stocks led US indexes higher following a strong profit report from Palantir Technologies, a darling benefiting from the artificial-intelligence boom.

The ASX200 had been up by as much as 0.8 per cent in early trading but closed slightly lower as US President Donald Trump's levies begin on China.

The threat of a punishing trade war sent Wall Street on a roller coaster overnight.

Billions of dollars have been wiped from the Australian share market as it plunged to its worst loss in four months and the dollar fell to a near five-year low.

Australia is leaning on its strong ties to the United States and a trade surplus to keep out of Donald Trump's firing line as he imposes tariffs on allies.

Tariff announcement hits stocks; Indexes: Dow down 0.8 per cent, S&P 500 down 0.5 per cent, Nasdaq down 0.3 per cent.

The ASX200 has risen almost half a per cent to finish at its highest-ever level and end January up 4.6 per cent from where it started.

US stocks ended a volatile session higher overnight as investors digested a stack of key earnings reports, with upbeat comments from Tesla helping to offset a disappointing forecast from Microsoft.