AAP

A third consecutive year of weak uranium prices has led to Paladin Energy's half-year net loss increasing to $US255 million.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott says he supports changing the law to allow Qantas to be majority overseas-owned, but won't be offering the airline a "free ride on the taxpayer".

The Australian share market has opened half a per cent higher after Wall Street shrugged off disappointing retail sales figures.

History is not a useful guide in predicting movements in the Australian dollar at the moment, a central bank official says.

Newcrest Mining has suffered an 88 per cent profit drop after being hit by a slide in gold prices, a massive tax bill and writedowns.

US stocks have closed higher, shrugging off some disappointing retail sales and jobless claims data.

Gold has posted the longest rally since July 2011, topping $US1,300 an ounce for the first time since November, after signs of faltering US economic growth added to the increasing investor appetite for haven assets.

The Australian dollar has risen after weak US economic figures raised hopes the US Federal Reserve might not increase the tapering of its economic stimulus program any time soon.

Premier Colin Barnett has warned more workers could lose their jobs this year, after the collapse of contractor Forge Group and a jump in the state's unemployment rate.

Mining giant Rio Tinto posted a full-year profit of $US3.7 billion in 2013, with large cost reductions and production records driving its underlying profit growth.

The Australian share market's run of gains has ended, due to mixed reactions to corporate profit reports.

Upmarket retailer David Jones has increased its sales in the three months to January 25 by almost five per cent to $618 million.

Australia's unemployment rate rose to 6 per cent in January, official figures show, the highest level since July 2003.

The Australian sharemarket has opened slightly higher after Telstra lifted its first half profit by almost 10 per cent.

Telstra has lifted its dividend for the first time in eight years after announcing a $1.7 billion profit.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann says the government is carefully considering calls for assistance from Qantas, saying it is conscious of the restrictions placed on the airline by the Sale Act.

US stocks finished mixed, snapping a four-day winning streak for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

China’s aggressive posturing has brought the expected response from countries in the region.

Negativity about the outlook for the European economy pushed the Australian dollar down from the one-month high hit on the back of strong Chinese trade figures.

The head of property developer Stockland says there is no housing price bubble and Australia remains a cheap place to achieve the dream of home ownership.

Australian stocks have finished higher for the fifth consecutive trading session as the resources sector led the gains.

Toyota and Treasurer Joe Hockey are at odds over whether workers' conditions and unions are to blame for the company deciding to pull out of car production in Australia in 2017.

Consumer confidence has fallen to its lowest level in seven months as worries about rising unemployment and higher interest rates causes anxiety about household finances.

Dexus Property Group has notched up a 3.8 per cent rise in its half year net profit to $277.2 million.

OZ Minerals has announced a loss of nearly $300 million and the departure of its chief executive Terry Burgess.

Shares in Australia's largest building materials company Boral have shot up to a three-year high after a 73 per cent jump in half year profit, excluding significant items.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia has increased its half yearly profit by 14 per cent to $4.27 billion, but its chief is still warning of volatile global and domestic markets.

The Australian share market has risen on the back of the Commonwealth Banks' strong half year profit.

The federal government's steely resolve to make Australian businesses fend for themselves faces its next test when Qantas chief Alan Joyce visits Canberra.

Oil prices have traded sideways after the new head of the Federal Reserve, Janet Yellen, indicated the Fed would stay the policy course mapped by her predecessor Ben Bernanke.

The Abbott government is reportedly preparing to sell off Medibank Private for $4 billion without having received expert advice on whether to do so and how.

US stocks have jumped more than one per cent after new US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen confirmed she would continue existing Fed monetary policy.