AAP

Woodside Petroleum is axing 300 jobs and freezing pay across the organisation as it deals with a plunge in the oil price.

The Australian market has started the session on a positive note, led by gains in the resources space.

More hints from the US central bank of a late interest rate hike have weighed on the US dollar and given the Australian currency a boost.

US stocks have finished somewhat lower after a quiet day of trade with the Nasdaq lagging the other two indices following last week's surge.

Oil prices have risen as the attractiveness of a weaker dollar offset news of higher crude production by Saudi Arabia.

Gold has firmed for the fourth straight session to its highest in more than two weeks, as the US dollar extends losses and expectations rise that the Federal Reserve will hold off until at least September to raise interest rates.

FOR as long as I can recall, numerous commentators have been forecasting a hard landing in China. And for as long as I can recall they have been wrong.

The Australian share market got to within five points of the 6,000 points mark on Monday but then fizzled out, with no major corporate or economic news to maintain momentum.

Orica director and former BHP Billiton executive Alberto Calderon has been appointed interim CEO at the explosives maker in the wake of the sudden exit of Ian Smith.

The Australian share market has opened higher as the bourse flirts with breaking the 6,000 point landmark for the first time in seven years.

The Australian dollar is one US cent firmer after a voting member of the US Federal Reserve argued that American interest rates should stay near zero for quite a bit longer.

Gold prices have hit two-week highs and are poised for their biggest weekly jump since mid-January, after the US Federal Reserve's cautious note on interest rates arrested a US dollar rally and sparked broad-based buying of commodities.

The Australian share market has closed higher, edging towards the 6000 point level, not seen since early 2008.

Australia is likely to avoid a recession as the mining boom fades, the Reserve Bank of Australia boss says.

The Australian share market has edged slightly lower as fresh falls in oil prices dragged on the energy and materials sectors.

Oil and gas producer Woodside Petroleum has successfully restarted production at its Pluto liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in north Western Australia.

The crude oil market has given back much of its Federal Reserve-sparked rally, with prices sinking back on the reality of continued high supplies and a strong dollar.

The Australian dollar is one US cent weaker as traders pile back into the greenback.

Gold has pared gains from a two-week high, clinging to short-covering gains despite the US dollar's recovery after a more-cautious-than-expected interest rate statement from the US Federal Reserve.

The Dow and S&P 500 have given back some of their gains from the prior session, while the Nasdaq edged up closer to 5,000.

Electronics retailer Dick Smith is cutting about 80 jobs as part of a restructure that aims to rein-in costs and improve its supply chain.

The share market has enjoyed its best day since Christmas as it rode a growing wave of expectation of a Reserve Bank rate cut.

With one foot in a Doc Martens boot and the other in a Vans sneaker, the owner of The Athlete's Foot is stepping into new territory.

Western Australian iron ore producer Karara Mining has cut 15 per cent of its workforce at its mine and port operations and head office in Perth following the continued fall of commodity prices.

Western Australian teachers have accepted the state government's pay rise offer, with the education minister labelling the deal a win for common sense and financial responsibility.

The share market has opened higher on growing expectations of a Reserve Bank interest rate cut.

New Myer chief executive Richard Umbers says the department store group has lost relevance with customers, suffering a 23 per cent slide in its first-half profit and downgraded its full-year guidance.

Wall Street stocks have surged after the Federal Reserve trimmed its US economic forecast and signalled a cautious approach to raising interest rates.

The Australian dollar has surged by two-and-a-half US cents after the US Federal Reserve surprised financial markets with weaker American growth forecasts, before falling back.

World oil prices have jumped as a cautious Federal Reserve statement offset data showing a big increase in US crude inventories.

Gold prices have surged more than two per cent, on track for the biggest rally since January after the Federal Reserve signalled a more cautious outlook for US economic growth, and the US dollar tumbled.

The Australian stock market has finished flat as wary investors wait for a key interest rate announcement by the US Federal Reserve.