AAP

US stocks have tumbled in a decline that analysts attribute to profit-taking after the equity market surge of 2013.

Gold prices have slipped after a bipartisan US budget deal soothed fears of a year-end budget crisis, sapping some of the recent investor appetite for the haven asset.

The Australian dollar is lower on expectations that the unemployment rate will edge higher and amid increased expectations that tapering of US economic stimulus will begin soon.

Oz Minerals has capped off a horror year with a disappointing update on its copper and gold reserves, which caused another share price plunge.

BHP Billiton is backing the US gas boom to continue and says exports from there could start within three years, which could be bad news for Australia's rival projects.

Australian shares have weakened for the fifth consecutive session after a key consumer sentiment reading fell to a five-month low.

Car maker Holden has confirmed it will stop manufacturing in Australia in 2017, bringing to an end months of uncertainty on the company's future, but its announcement has added to speculation about Toyota's future.

Mining giant Rio Tinto is still trying to find out what caused a toxic spill at its Rossing Uranium mine in Namibia - the company's second major radioactive incident this month.

Australian shares are marginally weaker as a lacklustre lead from Wall Street weighs down the big miners and some banking stocks.

US stocks have ended lower as investors looked ahead to a retail sales report that covers the beginning of the critical holiday shopping season.

The Australian dollar is higher on the back of US dollar weakness and strong economic data out of China.

BHP Billiton chief Andrew Mackenzie says his main aim is not growing volumes, confirming plans to cut capital expenditure by 25 per cent this year and further next year.

Quickstep Holdings has signed a $75 million agreement with US aerospace giant Lockheed Martin to supply wing flaps for C-130J Hercules transport aircrafts.

Production has been suspended at German chemical giant BASF's Hutt Lagoon site in Western Australia's mid west after thousands of litres of hydrochloric acid spilled from a tank at the site.

The Australian share market has closed almost flat, with investors running out of steam after a strong start.

Seven Group Holdings subsidiary WesTrac China will pay $US130 million ($A143 million) to acquire Caterpillar Global Mining's distribution and support business in north eastern China.

The Australian market was making gains in a surprisingly strong start in trading after a flat open had been tipped.

Senior opposition figure Penny Wong claims some coalition government ministers are championing the closure of Holden.

The Australian dollar is higher amid strong data out of the US and China and a more optimistic global economic outlook.

Brent oil prices have slumped following news of weaker German industrial output, while New York crude futures dipped slightly.

US stocks have edged higher as a Federal Reserve official suggested that the central bank could take a small step next week to reel in its stimulus program.

Telecom Corp has sold its Australian AAPT unit for $450 million to ASX-listed internet service provider, TPG Telecom, beating initial expectations of what the unit would go for.

Jobs advertised on the internet and in newspapers fell for the second consecutive month, and there are no clear signs of the labour market bouncing back in the coming months.

Australia have needed only 11.4 overs on the final day of the second Test to take England's remaining four wickets and claim a two-nil lead in the Ashes series.

The future of Holden will be on the agenda of a meeting between Prime Minister Tony Abbott and South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill on Thursday.

Australian shares have lost ground after insurer QBE flagged that it would post a $250 million loss for calendar 2013, prompting shocked investors to wipe more than $4 billion from the value of one of the ASX's 20 biggest companies.

The Australian share market is slightly lower as investors put aside good US jobs figures and strong Chinese trade data and focus on a shock profit warning from insurer QBE.

From Saturday, December 7:

Gold futures have eased as investors try to determine what impact the continued gains in US hiring will have on the timing of a reduction in Federal Reserve stimulus.

The Australian dollar has jumped more than three-quarters of a US cent after surprisingly strong Chinese trade data and good US jobs figures.

Electoral commissioner Ed Killesteyn is under pressure to quit after an inquiry found serious flaws in the Western Australian Senate election count, which could lead to $13 million being spent on a fresh poll.

The Australian share market has closed lower as financial stocks dragged down the bourse ahead of the release of important jobs numbers in the US.