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The Australian share market has closed lower as China's economic slowdown weighs on prices for industrial metals such as copper, nickel and zinc.

Local Government Minister Tony Simpson says he's aware Perth Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi is threatening to resign in the face of another inquiry into her conduct.

The Australian share market is trading flat on the last day of the month following minimal leads from overseas markets.

Lib-Nat rift undermines Ord

The Australian dollar has fallen below 72 US cents as last week's weak business investment figures and falling commodity prices weigh on the currency.

Gold has dropped almost two per cent to a near six-year low, set for a sixth straight weekly decline under pressure from a firm US dollar and prospects of a US interest rate rise in December.

The Australian share market has faded into the red after a positive start, dragged back by the absence of a lead from US markets, and investor fatigue.

A New Zealand-based insolvency expert has been put in charge of a new state government authority that will decide how $1.7 billion from the Bell Group litigation will be distributed.

Developers say the extension of a buffer around industrial areas near Kwinana has the potential to set a dangerous precedent over the erosion of the rights to develop land.

Australia Post has been given the thumbs up by the consumer watchdog to raise the price of a basic stamp by more than 40 per cent while taking longer to deliver the letters they are stuck on.

The Australian share market has opened higher, following positive leads from European bourses overnight with Wall Street closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Tunnel ‘worth $4b in benefits’

The Australian dollar is slightly lower as currency traders largely sit on the sidelines ahead of a flurry of key economic data next week.

World oil prices have drifted lower in muted trading conditions amid the Thanksgiving Day holiday in top consumer United States.

Former Western Australian under-treasurer John Langoulant has questioned the business community for failing to reprimand the state government’s loss of a AAA credit rating, at a Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre forum today.

The state government has begun the tender process to find a lead financial adviser as it plans to move ahead with divesting a portion of Keystart’s loan book to the private sector.

The Australian sharemarket has retreated from one per cent gains to end modestly higher.

The pay packet for an average full-time female worker was $27,000 less than a man's last financial year.

The Australian share market has opened more than half a percentage point higher, as investors flock back to the banks.

Hancock’s $162m dividend

The major US indexes were virtually unchanged at the close of a quiet trading day with gains in healthcare and consumer stocks after data showed US modest economic growth.

The Australian dollar has fallen from its one month low, weighed down by weaker commodity prices.

Oil prices have finished a bit higher after a US inventory report showed increased petroleum supply, but a separate report showed fewer drilling rigs in service.

Gold prices have dropped, hovering just above the lowest level in nearly six years after the US dollar rose on the back of strong American economic data.

The state government remains cautiously optimistic about its proposed sale of the Utah Point bulk handling facility in Port Hedland, following the introduction to parliament today of legislation to allow transition of the asset to the private sector.

Australia's big four banks have pulled the Australian share market more than half a percentage point lower, losing ground for a second straight session.

Wesfarmers chairman Michael Chaney has disagreed with Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens’ view that big companies have not reduced hurdle rates for investment decisions amid falling interest rates, in an address at this morning’s Business News Success & Leadership breakfast.

A consortium of Australian and international investment funds has bought the NSW-based TransGrid "poles and wire" network in a deal worth more than $10 billion.

The Australian share market has opened flat, with the resources sector offsetting losses in the banks.

A jump in petroleum-linked shares has helped lift US stocks after the Turkish downing of a Russian fighter jet on the Syrian border sparked a rally in the oil market.

Woodside faces costs battle on WA gas projects