AAP

Lending finance approvals rose in June but the underlying trend, while positive, remains sluggish, giving no clear lead to policymakers.

Premier Colin Barnett has refused a televised debate with opposition leader Mark McGowan after accusing him of being a "fence sitter" on key election issues.

James Packer's casinos and hotels company Crown wants to raise $400 million to help pay for its expansion plans.

Electronics retailer JB Hi-Fi is aiming to boost its market share as more of its troubled rivals fall by the wayside in the gloomy retail market.

Australian shares were higher at opening as hope continued for improvement in the European debt crisis.

Newcrest Mining's full year profit is up 23 per cent due to rising gold prices and the company expects gold production to rise in the current financial year.

In what is fast becoming one of Australia's most bitterly fought environmental campaigns, cold, hard cash - rather than conservation - is likely to determine the fate of Woodside Petroleum's multib

US stocks shrugged off mixed corporate results and eurozone worries to hold onto their gains on Friday, with the main indexes all ending higher for the week despite little concrete positive news.

The Australian dollar has closed lower, after the release of disappointing Chinese trade figures.

The Australian sharemarket ended the week on a negative note following the release of disappointing Chinese trade data which signalled further weakness in the global economy.

A new network will help the federal government identify female candidates for its board positions.

Property management and development company Goodman Group is looking to expand into South America as it posts a full year profit of $408.3 million.

The federal government faces another tussle with the Australian Greens over a cut in the corporate tax rate, if the reduction is funded by reducing research and development (R&D) tax concession

ANZ has left its variable interest rates on hold at 6.8 per cent after its monthly review.

The forecast pace of growth in the Australian economy for 2012 is better than previously expected, but problems in the euro zone threaten to crash the party, the Reserve Bank of Australia says.

A second former AWB executive has been fined and temporarily banned from corporate management over the Iraqi kickbacks scandal.

The Australian stock market has opened slightly higher after the New York stock exchange closed on a flat trading day.

The Australian dollar is slightly lower after weak Chinese industrial production figures disappointed markets.

US stocks ended flat after a seesaw day of trade, uninspired by modestly promising US jobs and trade data.

The Australian dollar is more than half a US cent higher, following the release solid job figures.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia says its acquisition of BankWest saved the Australian economy from a major financial shock during the global downturn.

The Australian share market has closed marginally lower as investors took a breather from this week's run upwards.

Higher and more volatile funding costs for banks have contributed to higher interest rates than the cash rate, the central bank says.

Former AWB managing director Andrew Lindberg has been fined $100,000 and banned from managing companies for two years over the Iraqi kickbacks scandal.

Business groups welcome new prospects for a corporate tax cut after this year's false promise, but they fear it could come at a painful cost in other areas.

If drinking and talking shop were an Olympic sport, Kalgoorlie's Diggers and Dealers conference would be a gold medal event.

The Western Australian Greens have chosen a small business owner in Broome to battle for a seat brimming with hot issues in the next state election.

The takeover battle for Hastings Diversified Utilities Fund (HDF) has stepped up with pipeline operator APA Group increasing its offer.

Australian shares opened slightly higher as the resources sector posts gains after Rio Tinto predicted China would have a quick recovery in its pace of growth.

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation is expecting moderate earnings growth in its 2013 financial year after suffering a 55 per cent slide in profit during 2012.

Telstra has increased its full year profit to $3.4 billion and forecasts further growth in the year ahead as it attracts new mobile phone and broadband customers.

Australian exporters are optimistic about business conditions, with a new survey showing more than half expect to increase export orders this year.