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The Australian share market has opened lower as investors shaken by recent volatility sit on the sidelines ahead of the US central bank's interest rate decision.

The Australian dollar has briefly hit 71 US cents, as the currency gets continued support from strong local jobs figures.

Apple and some other technology stocks have led US markets higher ahead of next week's hotly anticipated Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting.

Despite the Liberals' big margin in Canning, the government is taking nothing for granted as the by-election nears.

World oil prices have risen as investors focused on a decline in US crude production instead of a bigger-than-expected jump in inventories.

Gold has risen from four-week lows as European stocks snapped a three-day run of gains, but traders remain cautious as they await fresh clues on the timing of a US rate rise.

Fierce bidding for a retail investment property in Bayswater that went to auction has provided a snapshot of Perth's commercial market, illustrating the demand for well-leased developments.

The Australian share market has closed more than 2 per cent lower as investors fret over US rate hikes and Chinese volatility.

A bill to officially recognise Aboriginal people in the Western Australian constitution has passed through state parliament.

7-Eleven founder and chairman Russ Withers says allegations of staff underpayment by franchisees have challenged all levels of the company, and substantial changes will be made to its business model.

Crown Perth and Scope Training are among this year's winners in the 21st annual WA Training Awards.

If Woodside Petroleum's one-for-four share swap bid for rival LNG producer Oil Search was plan A, then plan B, when it comes, had better be a beauty, because so far no-one apart from Woodside management can say anything positive about the proposed takeover.

The Australian Institute of Geoscientists has appealed to the federal government for the inclusion of the geoscientist profession on the list of jobs to which labour market testing applies under the 457 visa program.

Perth-based rare earths explorer Greenland Minerals and Energy will undertake a $6.1 million non-renounceable rights issue to fund ongoing work at its Kvanefield project.

Cash Converters International has announced a number of board changes, including the retirement of its chairman, and has commenced a review of the business as it responds to challenging market conditions.

Employment in Western Australia lifted in August to 1.36 million, adding around 7,000 jobs in seasonally adjusted terms on July, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

A small recovery in iron ore prices has helped boost margins and prices for struggling miner Atlas Iron.

The Australian share market has opened sharply lower.

This week REIWA members reported the total number of sales have declined to 615, a decrease of 9 per cent on the previous week.

The Australian dollar has followed US stocks lower on concerns the US Federal Reserve might not raise its interest rate next week.

US stocks have finished sharply lower as a morning rally fizzled and Apple shares dropped after unveiling a suite of upgraded smartphone, tablet and television products.

Oil prices have tumbled as expectations of another increase in US inventories added to worries about the global oversupply.

Gold has fallen to a four-week low as stock markets strengthened and the US dollar firmed, though prices remained hemmed into a narrow range ahead of next week's Federal Reserve meeting.

Joe Hockey believes the Abbott government's economic plan is the best friend of consumers, even as another indicator pointed to tumbling confidence.

Australian shares have risen for the second straight session, helped by strong gains in overseas markets and rally in banking stocks.

Insurance giant QBE Insurance Group is being sued by Australian investors in a $200 million class action over the company's 2013 share price collapse.

The number of home loans approved in July was unchanged in Western Australia, while the national rate rose 0.3 per cent according to seasonally adjusted Australian Bureau of Statistics data.

The Abbott government needs to acknowledge its mistakes if it is to mount a comeback in the polls, and win the 2016 election.

Sport is taking over business in Perth as the AFL finals loom, with the ‘Go Freo' sign on Woodside Plaza rivalled by a ‘Go Eagles' sign on BHP Billiton's home at Brookfield Place, while the mining giant also committed to a new investment at the under-construction Perth Stadium.

Vanadium and uranium explorer Yellow Rock Resources has formed a new subsidiary with an unnamed local solar system installer to sell vanadium-based batteries in Australia.

Australians should look beyond their disappointment with recent sluggish economic growth and take heart from the economy's ability to cope with shocks, Reserve Bank of Australia deputy governor Philip Lowe says.

Local IT firm ASG Group has won a $9 million contract to provide managed services to the Victorian Department of Education and Training (DET), under an initial two-year term.