AAP

Standard and Poor's has placed Germany, France and 13 other eurozone members on a negative credit watch, warning they could be hit with downgrades.

US stock markets pared gains on Monday after a newspaper report said that Germany and five other triple-A eurozone countries face the prospect of a credit downgrade.

Unemployment is expected to rise slightly in November, reflecting the uncertainty felt about the world economy by Australian employers.

An inquiry headed by former Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty will begin immediately to investigate the cause of the Margaret River bushfire and the prescribed burn that got out of

Treasurer Wayne Swan has announced two new appointments to the Reserve Bank of Australia board.

There has been a sharp decline in business confidence as worries grow that the European financial crisis will worsen and hit the global economy, a private sector survey shows.

Australian shares have risen by 0.8 per cent, buoyed by hopes that European leaders may be able to thrash out a deal to salvage the region's debt crisis this week.

The amount of compensation employers are paying out to workers in claims for skin cancer has doubled in less than a decade.

West Australian opposition leader Eric Ripper is warning his federal Labor counterparts they won't get any uranium from WA if he wins the next election.

Billionaire Nathan Tinkler's coal explorer Aston Resources and coal miner Whitehaven Coal have entered into talks about a potential merger that analysts say would create a powerful entity.

The Australian economy is expected to have grown strongly in the September quarter of 2011 as the booming mining sector fuels a solid rise in business investment.

The days when ANZ can slug credit card holders with late payment fees may be numbered.

WA recorded an increase in jobs advertised on the internet and in newspapers despite a flatline in the national figure, according to a report released today.

A rise in company profits during the September quarter reflects high commodity prices and a peak in Australia's terms of trade, economists say.

Shares in Aquila Resources gained over four per cent after the company received approval from the state environment minister for its first iron ore mine.

Wage growth under enterprise bargaining agreements edged up slightly in the June quarter but new government data showed a stark difference between deals reached between public and private sector wo

Australia's services sector continued to contract in November as frugal households saved more of their income.

Australian shares have opened 0.5 per cent higher after Italy announced $26 billion in tax hikes and spending cuts as it strives to avoid an economic meltdown.

The Australian dollar was trading higher this morning, after the Italian government announced new austerity measures to overcome the country's crippling debt woes.

European Union monitors and ratings agencies bear some of the blame for Greece's debt crisis that has plunged the continent into financial turmoil, former Greek prime minister George Papandreou say

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has called on the Australian Labor Party to have a "fair dinkum" debate about its future as she laid out a plan to deliver more jobs, lower taxes and economic growth.

State Labor leader Eric Ripper has blasted Prime Minister Julia Gillard for using him as an excuse to deny Western Australia more than $200 million in native title compensation.

Fremantle has officially welcomed 1200 sailors from 80 countries for the 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships.

Investors sprinted home in the last hour of trading to push an already positive week on the market into higher territory.

Australia's big four banks have had their credit ratings downgraded by Standard & Poor's as the agency changes its criteria for assessing banks.

The Australian Labor Party's national conference has backed the federal government's commitment to a budget surplus and rejected a bid by the Left faction to expand the reach of the mining tax.

Opposition finance spokesman Andrew Robb is standing by the accountants who have been have been fined for breaching professional standards in costing the coalition's 2010 election policies, saying

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has promised Australians more jobs, lower taxes and economic growth in the face of a slowing global economy.

The Christmas period will be a challenging one for the retail industry, David Jones chief executive Paul Zahra says.

Mining giant Rio Tinto will invest an additional $US2.7 billion ($2.6 billion) modernising its aluminium smelter in British Columbia, Canada.

Australian shares have gained slightly, rising for the fifth day in a row, after markets in Europe and the US mostly declined after the previous day's jump.

The Australian dollar has consolidated its position, still enjoying the effects of a liquidity boost by six major central banks earlier this week.