AAP

US stocks have posted solid gains, rallying on news of a ceasefire in Ukraine as strong earnings from Cisco lifted the technology sector.

Global oil prices rebounded as more leading petroleum producers announced they would curtail investment because of tumbling crude prices.

The Australian dollar has rebounded, gaining more than one US cent overnight following the release of disappointing US retail sales and jobs figures.

Gold prices have posted mild gains as news of a ceasefire in Ukraine tempered support from a weaker US dollar.

The highest unemployment rate in more than 12 years has dented the share market, with concerns about a slowing economy hitting the banks.

Energy giant BP has slashed the workforce at its Kwinana oil refinery by 20 per cent.

Councils won't get a single cent of compensation for the Western Australian government's failed amalgamation plans.

A 100-tonne crane was accidentally dropped into the hold of a cargo ship during loading at the port of Fremantle.

Oil and gas producer Santos faces a $1.6 billion hit to its books after the dramatic slide in global oil prices.

Mirvac Group is on track to achieve the upper end of its earnings guidance as low interest rates fire up the housing sector.

Mining giant Rio Tinto will spend $US2 billion ($A2.6 billion) buying back its own shares and has increased its dividend despite reporting a result marked by falling earnings.

The national unemployment rate has shot up to a 12.5-year high, increasing the chances of a second Reserve Bank interest rate cut in March.

The Australian share market has opened higher.

Wall Street stocks have finished little changed as investors eyed key Brussels talks on Greece's demands to renegotiate its international bailout as the risk of a debt default looms.

Telstra has reaffirmed its full year earnings guidance after lifting its first half profit 22 per cent to more than $2 billion.

The Australian dollar is under pressure as investors await the outcome of an emergency eurozone meeting to discuss the future of debt-stricken Greece.

World oil prices have fallen sharply, with New York crude sliding below $US49, as swelling US inventories added to the global supply glut.

Gold prices have fallen as a stronger US currency damped investors' appetite for the dollar-denominated metal.

China-based Premiere Eastern Energy will list on the Australian sharemarket tomorrow as it pursues growth in the world's largest economy.

The Australian sharemarket has finished weaker because of disappointing company results and continued commodity price weakness.

Asset sales by the new management of construction giant Leighton Holdings have boosted annual profit and offset lower earnings from its mining operations.

Copper and gold miner Oz Minerals is back in the black thanks to improved production at its Prominent Hill mine in South Australia.

Australia's housing construction boom has helped Boral rebound to record $104 million in half-year profit, but the building products maker says the benefit of further rate cuts on housing will likely be minimal.

Australia's biggest workforce provider, Skilled Group, has unveiled a flat first-half profit result although its engineering and marine services businesses posted strong earnings.

The sharemarket is slightly higher after Australia's largest company the Commonwealth Bank announced a huge first half profit.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has unveiled a record $4.62 billion half-year profit, but warned weak consumer and business confidence levels are threatening the economy and has placed the problem squarely at the federal government's feet.

Wall Street stocks have rallied, with tech giant Apple hitting an all-time high and investors applauding encouraging earnings from Coca-Cola and other upbeat company news.

Oil prices have slumped after the International Energy Agency issued a downbeat global market outlook and traders braced for a further increase in record US crude-oil stockpiles.

The Australian dollar has slipped back below 78 US cents as the US dollar regains its strength.

Gold prices have fallen, as investors pushed up yields on US government bonds on expectations that the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates later in 2015.

Concerns about a Greek debt default and gloomy local economic sentiment have weakened the Australian share market.

Bradken shares plunged 22 per cent after it suffered a heavy half-year loss, adding to expectations of a bleak earnings season for mining contractors.