AAP

Engineering group Downer EDI is warning of further hits to come as belt tightening in the mining sector contributed to a 3 per cent fall in annual profit.

Mining giant Rio Tinto will ramp-up cost cutting after a plunging iron ore price contributed to a massive half-year profit fall.

The Australian share market has closed lower, largely pulled down by weakness among the major banks after the ANZ bank announced a $3 billion capital raising.

Premier Colin Barnett has hit out at Perth local councils for imposing big increases in annual rates.

Services on the famed Perth-to-Sydney train, the Indian Pacific, will be cut and pensioner ticket prices hiked as its operator tries to make up for a $9 million federal budget cut.

Australia's unemployment rate unexpectedly jumped to a six-month high of 6.3 per cent in July, pushed up by a surge in the number of people looking for work.

The Australian share market has opened lower.

The Australian dollar is higher despite strong US non-manufacturing activity offsetting softer US employment figures.

US stocks have finished mostly higher following mixed economic data, but a disappointing earnings report from Disney has weighed on the Dow.

Oil prices have fallen after a US government report showed an unexpected rise in petrol inventories and an increase in oil production amid global oversupply worries.

Gold has eased, hovering above the recent five-and-a-half-year low on earlier pressure from the US dollar as US services sector data revives expectations of a US interest rate rise as early as September.

The unemployment rate is expected to rise slightly as slowing jobs growth fails to keep up with population growth.

The share market has fallen as gains by miners were more than outweighed by falls in all other sectors.

Cracks are appearing in Australia's housing construction boom, with fears it will peak in the next 12 months.

Skilled Group has suffered a full-year loss of nearly $17 million due to write-downs linked to its impending takeover by rival labour hire business Programmed Maintenance Services.

The Australian share market has opened lower.

US stocks have finished lower following a mixed batch of earnings reports and another big decline by technology giant Apple.

Oil prices have risen modestly snapping a three-day skid as traders await key data on US petroleum supplies and employment levels.

The Australian dollar is virtually unchanged, with a push for a US rate hike from a Fed boss offsetting favourable comments from the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Gold has retreated from intraday highs as the US dollar moved higher and a voting member of the Federal Reserve said he's ready to support an interest rate increase in September.

The share market closed higher as biotechnology giant CSL broke a milestone and retailers surged on good sales numbers.

Gold miner Regis Resources is looking for acquisitions as a weak gold price opens up opportunities.

The Reserve Bank appears unlikely to cut rates any time soon after leaving the cash rate at a record low of 2 per cent for a third straight month.

Australians splashing out on household goods have delivered a boost to retail spending in June.

The Australian share market has opened lower.

US stocks have fallen with petroleum-linked equities retreating on a big drop in oil prices as Wall Street girds for a busy week of economic reports.

Oil prices have dived, with Brent crude tumbling about five per cent, after new data showed weakening US and Chinese manufacturing and amid worries about the global supply glut.

The Australian dollar has dipped against the greenback, as investors remain cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank's interest rate decision.

Gold has dropped, after falling by the most in two years in July, as the dollar rose and investors monitored US economic indicators for clues on the timing of a hike in US interest rates.

The Australian share market has closed lower amid weak prices for commodities, such as oil, and weak manufacturing data from China.

Newmont Mining is pushing ahead with new exploration sites to extend the life of its Kalgoorlie operations, but says it will not encroach on the historic gold rush town.

Skilled Group is facing a writedown of up to $67.4 million in relation to its takeover by rival labour hire business Programmed Maintenance Services.