AAP

The Australian share market has closed slightly higher on Friday after strong gains on Thursday, with heavyweight Commonwealth Bank weighing on the index and blood products and vaccines giant CSL providing some lift.

Telstra boss Andrew Penn will take home $5.2 million this year, almost $1.6 million less than he did a year ago, as the telco's plunging share price weighs on his share entitlements.

Australian shares have opened higher, boosted by a strong overnight lead from Wall Street, with the local market currently on track to recover the week's losses.

The Australian dollar has bounced back against its US counterpart as geopolitical tensions and uneven US data continue to plague the currency.

Petrol futures have surged more than 13 per cent, and crude oil has settled nearly 3 per cent higher, as almost a quarter of US refining capacity remained offline and traders scrambled to reroute millions of barrels of fuel.

Widespread gains led by miners, banks and healthcare giants have driven the share market to its best daily gain in almost three weeks.

Cattle exporter Wellard says the China market has potential but only if prices for Australian cattle come down.

Qantas is changing one of its most popular routes and upgrading the aircraft on another key service as part of a five-year extended partnership with Emirates.

The Australian market has opened higher, after Wall Street gained following better-than-expected economic growth and private jobs data.

Gold has steadied, as a stronger US dollar pushed the metal off Tuesday's nine-and-a-half-month high, but the precious metal remains above $US1,300 on renewed tensions between Washington and North Korea.

The Australian dollar is sharply down against its US counterpart as risk sentiment improves amid strong US economic data.

Petrol futures have surged to a two-year high while crude oil was down, as flooding and damage from Tropical Storm Harvey shut nearly a quarter of US refinery capacity, curbing demand for crude while raising the risk of fuel shortages.

The Australian share market had a steady session despite Telstra shares falling to a five-year low.

Disgruntled Ten Network Holdings shareholders are considering a class action against the troubled network as they face receiving no compensation for their stock under the takeover proposed by US media giant CBS.

Andrew Forrest has called on Cameron Clyne to resign, claiming the ARU chairman misrepresented the reasons he chose to axe the Western Force.

Telstra's plan to pay down debt and create new shareholder returns by monetising the receipts from the national broadband network has been rejected by the rollout company.

The Australian share market has bounced back from its previous sessions' 10-week low and opened higher with investor nerves cooling after North Korea fired a missile over Japan.

The Australian dollar is a little higher against its US counterpart which rebounded as markets reversed their risk averse response to North Korea's missile firing over Japan..

US petrol futures have jumped four per cent while crude prices are mixed after a hurricane shut down 16 per cent of the country's refining capacity, curbing fuel production and further bloating crude inventories.

Gold has jumped to its highest since November, extending the prior day's rally above $US1,300 per ounce as investors bought bullion as insurance against falling prices of other assets after North Korea tested a ballistic missile over Japan.

The Australian share market has slumped to a 10-week low after North Korea fired a missile over Japan, escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula and spooking Asian markets.

Engineering and mining contractor Downer says its acquisition of facilities management provider Spotless and new rail infrastructure projects will drive the company's growth.

Atlas Iron has swung to a full-year profit as a rebound in iron ore prices helped the junior miner recover from losses following a write-down a year earlier.

The Australian market has opened sharply lower after Wall Street closed little changed but with energy and bank stocks dented as Tropical Storm Harvey crippled the US energy hub in Texas. 

Gold has rallied to a 9-1/2-month high, breaching $US1,300 per ounce as the dollar fell and the euro rose after the head of the European Central Bank (ECB) said that the euro zone's economic recovery had taken hold at a meeting of central bankers.

The Australian dollar has surged against its US counterpart which has fallen further with Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen's making no mention of monetary policy at or since the Jackson Hole central bankers meeting.

US crude oil futures has fallen as Tropical Storm Harvey has kept hammering the US Gulf Coast, knocking out several refineries, which backed up crude supplies and disrupted fuel production.

The Australian share market has ended the day down, with a rise in global oil prices leading the energy sector higher but unable to offset broad-based losses.

A decision on whether to sell betting agency TAB will not be made until after the Western Australian budget is handed down next week.

A Western Australian Liberals-led High Court challenge over the state's GST share will be partly financed by crowdfunding.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia will face an inquiry by the prudential regulator after a series of issues at the country's largest bank prompted concerns about its governance, culture and accountability.

Ten Network Holdings has been bought by US media giant CBS in a deal that should keep Australia's third commercial free-to-air broadcaster on air.