AAP

Qantas Airways says its nine million frequent flyers will be able to use points to redeem flights across the Emirates network from March 31.

Business-focused telco Amcom Telecommunications has delivered a 20 per cent lift in first half profit and flagged a similar result for the full year.

The federal government has no plans to change the design of its mining tax, Prime Minister Julia Gillard says.

The central bank will have to cut the cash rate again at some stage given the chronic low levels of business and consumer confidence, a leading business group says.

Business confidence in January mostly held on to its gains made in December, helped by a rally in the local sharemarket, a private survey says.

Gains by the major banks have pushed the Australian share market toward the 5,000 point level.

 Independent MP Rob Oakeshott feels the Gillard government partly duped him about the design of its mining tax.

US stocks have closed barely lower, with buyers finding little fresh inspiration after last week's five-year highs to offset a fall in energy shares.

The Australian dollar is slightly higher following a quiet day of trading, with Asian markets closed due to the Lunar New Year holidays.

The Australian share market closed lower, led down by falls in mining-related sectors.

 Australian sheep are still being brutally slaughtered at a livestock market in Kuwait despite complaints to the federal government, an animal welfare group says.

The state government will hold urgent talks to prevent a bus drivers strike after a second gas bus fire.

Oil and gas producer Nexus Energy says it has found the source of a fault that has halted production at its Victorian gas fields for a month but more work is required before output can be resumed.

The Liberal party's highly anticipated light rail plan will cost $1.8 billion and move 25,000 commuters a day.

Tax concessions within Australia's superannuation system are not as generous as those in other countries.

Shares in JB Hi-fi have soared by more than 15 per cent after the electronics retailer announced it had lifted its first half profit by three per cent.

Shares in Alkane Resources shot up 14 per cent this morning after the minerals explorer announced it has been granted a mining lease for its Tomingley Gold Project near Dubbo in NSW.

 The Australian stock market has opened flat, with strong gains in consumer discretionary stocks offset by weakness in mining-related sectors.

Opposition to the carbon tax by Western Australia's Labor leader Mark McGowan has been ridiculed by the state's Liberals as electioneering by a "fence sitter".

 The federal opposition says the Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Treasurer Wayne Swan are to blame for a substantial shortfall in mining tax revenue.

Australians are struggling to put money aside, while households are feeling less comfortable after having spent their carbon tax compensation allowances, a survey has found.

The S&P 500 punched to a new five-year high on Friday and the Nasdaq to its best since 2000, as stocks regained footing helped by a sharply narrowed US trade deficit.

Energy giant Chevron has made its twentieth gas discovery off the Western Australian coast in the past two and a half years.

Holden's new VF Commodore will not be the final model of the well-loved Australian car, its managing director says.

The Australian dollar fell to its lowest level in more than three months after the central bank indicated the door is open for more interest rate cuts.

Shares in Africa-focused iron ore hopeful Sundance Resources plunged almost 12 per cent after it revealed yet another delay in the drawn out takeover by its Chinese suitor.

A Perth engineering company has been fined $10,000 after a 16-year-old apprentice lost two fingers doing dangerous work without a licence.

The Australian share market finished stronger near a 22-month high, as investors reacted positively to economic data from China indicating a rebound in activity.

Vodafone Australia's revenue fell by 16 per cent in the last three months of 2012 as it continued to lose thousands of customers.

The Reserve Bank of Australia has poured cold water on hopes banks will go it alone in 2013 and reduce lending rates without further official rate cuts.

Australia's rate of economic growth is expected to ease slightly in 2013 as mining investment slows, the central bank says.

Energy Minister Peter Collier is deflecting calls for his sacking over cost blow outs in the Muja coal-fired power station refurbishment.