Australia & New Zealand

More

• Macquarie Joins JP Morgan in Southern Water Bid: Report Thursday, 6 Sep 2007 | 11:11 PM ET

  Australian infrastructure investment group Macquarie is set to team up with U.S. bank JP Morgan in a £4 billion (US$8 billion) bid battle for Britain's Southern Water, The Telegraph reported on its website.

• Asian Stocks Finish Mostly Higher, China Hits Record High Thursday, 6 Sep 2007 | 5:10 AM ET

  Asian stocks closed in broadly positive territory Thursday, with the exception of Hong Kong and Australia, despite U.S. housing data renewing fears over the strength of Asia's top export market.

• PetroChina Inks Second Australian LNG Deal Thursday, 6 Sep 2007 | 3:13 AM ET

  Woodside Petroleum inked an initial multi-billion dollar deal on Thursday with PetroChina to sell liquefied natural gas (LNG) from its proposed Browse project off Western Australia.

• China's Hu Wants U.N. Framework on Climate Change Thursday, 6 Sep 2007 | 2:33 AM ET

  China's President Hu Jintao gave qualified support to an Australian initiative on climate change on Thursday as a rift opened at the APEC meeting over the "Sydney Declaration" and its targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

• Australia Employment Surges Even as Markets Strain Wednesday, 5 Sep 2007 | 11:00 PM ET

  Australian employment surged in August while unemployment held at 33-year lows, suggesting the domestic economy had built a full head of steam even as turmoil in credit markets threatened the outlook for global growth.

• Asian Markets Finished Mixed, U.S. Data in Focus Wednesday, 5 Sep 2007 | 6:19 AM ET

  

  Asian markets closed mixed following a cautious day ahead of major U.S. data due this week and an interest rate meeting by the European central bank. Japanese stocks boar the brunt of declines, while Hong Kong investors enjoyed resilience in the Hang Seng.

• Bush, Howard Cement Alliance as APEC Begins Meeting Wednesday, 5 Sep 2007 | 2:43 AM ET

  U.S. President George W. Bush and Australian Prime Minister John Howard cemented a strong alliance on Wednesday as Asia-Pacific ministers began talks ranging from human security and climate change to trade and economic reform.

• Coles Recommends Wesfarmers Enhanced $15 Billion Bid Wednesday, 5 Sep 2007 | 12:13 AM ET

  Troubled Australian retailer Coles Group said on Wednesday its board had recommended an enhanced takeover offer from conglomerate Wesfarmers.

• Bush Says Floating Yuan "Helpful" to Trade Balance Tuesday, 4 Sep 2007 | 11:01 PM ET

  U.S. President George W. Bush said on Wednesday it would help to balance trade if China floated its currency, which has been allowed to appreciate gradually in the past two years but remains tightly managed.

• RBA Leaves Cash Target Rate at 6.5% Tuesday, 4 Sep 2007 | 8:05 PM ET

  The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) said Wednesday its board decided to leave the cash target rate at 6.50 percent after Tuesday's monthly policy meeting.

• Asian Stocks Close Mixed, Sydney Higher on Strong GDP Tuesday, 4 Sep 2007 | 5:31 AM ET

  Asian stocks closed mixed in subdued trading on the lack of a lead from U.S. markets which were closed on Monday for a public holiday.

• Bush Due in Sydney for APEC, Protests Planned Tuesday, 4 Sep 2007 | 1:54 AM ET

  After a lightning visit to Iraq, U.S. President George W. Bush arrives in Australia on Tuesday where he can expect anti-Iraq war protests as he attends an Asia-Pacific leaders' summit in Sydn

• Australia's CSR Sees FY EBIT Fallling 5% Monday, 3 Sep 2007 | 11:56 PM ET

  Australian conglomerate CSR Ltd said on Tuesday its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) this year were likely to be 5% down on the previous year, before one-offs, hurt by lower sugar prices.

• Asian Markets Close Mixed, Japan Stuck in Negative Territory Monday, 3 Sep 2007 | 10:24 AM ET

  

  Asian markets were mixed Monday, as investors stayed cautious in spite of reassuring statements by U.S. President George W. Bush and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke on sheltering the economy from the turmoil in the markets.

• Canada Pension Seeks Stake in NZ's Auckland Airport Sunday, 2 Sep 2007 | 11:59 PM ET

  Canada's state-backed pension fund said on Monday it will seek up to 49% of New Zealand's Auckland International Airport as a rival Dubai-based deal looks set to fail.

• Australian Inventories Drag on Economy in Q2 Sunday, 2 Sep 2007 | 11:29 PM ET

  Australian businesses added to inventories at a slower pace last quarter amid subdued sales, suggesting stocks subtracted more from economic growth than first thought.

• Australia's Leighton to Merge Gulf Unit With Al Habtoor Sunday, 2 Sep 2007 | 10:05 PM ET

  Australia's largest construction and contract mining group, Leighton Holdings Ltd, said Monday it will merge its operations in the Arabian Gulf with Al Habtoor Engineering by acquiring a 45 percent stake in Al Habtoor for about 870 million Australian dollars.

• Asian Markets Close Firmly Higher, Expecting U.S. Rally Friday, 31 Aug 2007 | 5:38 AM ET

  

  Asian markets made solid gains Friday, ending the week firmly in positive territory as investors bet on a positive reaction to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech on monetary policy and housing in Jackson Hole, Wyo. at 11 am Singapore time.

• Palmary Bids for Australia's Consolidated Minerals Friday, 31 Aug 2007 | 2:31 AM ET

  1st paragraph of story should go here

• Harvey Norman Profits from Brisk TV, Laptop Sales Friday, 31 Aug 2007 | 1:17 AM ET

  Australian electrical goods and furniture retailer Harvey Norman beat forecasts with a 28% rise in year profit on strong sales of flat-screen TVs and laptops, sending its shares up more than 6%.