Market Reports

• Australian Market Report: After shooting up 2.8 per cent in early trade, the S&P/ASX 200 index closed 223.00 points or 2.6 per cent higher at 8951.8, adding about $80 billion in value..... [more]

• U.S. Market Report: Wall Street's main indexes climbed to ​near one-month highs on Wednesday after the U.S. and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire, sending crude prices lower ‌.... [more]

• European Market Report: European stocks rose sharply on Wednesday thanks to sustained buying right through the day's session as U.S.-Iran ceasefire deal lifted sentiment..... [more]

• Asian Market Report: Asian stocks skyrocketed on Wednesday after the U.S. and Iran agreed to a conditional two-week ceasefire, during which shipping traffic will be allowed through the Strait of Hormuz..... [more]

Australian Business News

• Australian motorists could start seeing relief at the petrol pump within the month as a global oil price collapse raises hopes that fuel costs have finally peaked, so long as the Middle East ceasefire successfully restores the flow of energy.... [more]

• Owner-drivers, small trucking businesses and transport employees are preparing to tell the Fair Work Commission tomorrow that they are just “weeks away” from collapse unless fuel costs are urgently addressed..... [more]

• An annual fee for driving electric vehicles could put the brakes on their record sales in Australia, with almost one in three households saying it would change their purchase intentions..... [more]

• Queensland's seller disclosure laws are driving a "concerning" rise in unethical behaviour like 'gazumping', the state's peak real estate body says. Agents say there is growing frustration within the industry .... [more]

• The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has stepped into the sale of InterPrac, commencing Federal Court proceedings to seek the appointment of a receiver to investigate the proposed sale of the licensee..... [more]

• Keep calm and keep buying quality tech, says Bell Potter. Markets have been flirting with correction territory, but Bell Potter sees opportunity. Here are the 2 ETFs it likes from here..... [more]

• Independent wealth management firm, Integro Private Wealth, has moved to enhance its presence and advice delivery efforts across regional Western Australia by merging with fellow WA-based advice practice, Lighthouse Capital.... [more]

• Queensland premier calls for fast-track of oil projects amid fuel crisis.... [more]

• Zenith Minerals Ltd has wasted no time putting the rig to work at its Consolidated Dulcie gold project in WA’s Southern Cross region, officially kicking off a high-impact drilling campaign.... [more]

• Delorean Corporation (ASX:DEL) will be adding a new fuel source to the Australian network with the company’s board reaching a positive final investment decision (FID) for its Horsley Park bioenergy project in New South Wales..... [more]

• Novo lifts Pilbara exploration tempo with antimony drill campaign.... [more]

• Shares in Greatland Resources Ltd (AIM:GGP, OTC:GRLGF, FRA:G8G, ASX:GGP) rose 14% to 760p after the gold and copper miner reported quarterly production.... [more]

• Mount Ridley metallurgy breakthrough lifts rare earth outlook.... [more]

• Advance Metals has dropped an impressive maiden mineral resource for its flagship Yoquivo silver-gold project in Mexico, confirming the high-grade, bulk mining potential of the recently acquired project..... [more]

• DroneShield Shares Plunge as CEO Steps Down Despite Record Quarter.... [more]

• OMG enters next innings with Steve Smith board appointment.... [more]

• Opinion - Greg Jericho: Is Australia headed for a recession? A growing number of economists think so – here’s why I’m not one of them.... [more]

• Explainer - Lacey Filipich: What is financial stress and how does it affect our decisions? With rising fuel costs and interest rates on top of our already high cost of living, financial stress is hitting many of us hard..... [more]

• Opinion/Comment - Shani Jayamanne: The ATO has released a super health check – here’s what I would have told you instead.... [more]

World Business News

• Iran is holding the world economy hostage. Trump’s truce proves its leverage.... [more]

• Investors placed an approximately $950 million bet on oil prices falling just hours before the U.S. and Iran announced a ceasefire, the latest large wager on the direction of the world's most traded commodity ahead of a major policy.... [more]

• The Federal Reserve still sees interest rate cuts in the future if inflation were to decline in line with its expectations, the minutes of the central bank's March meeting showed on Wednesday..... [more]

• Here's what top voices in markets and economics are saying about the Iran war ceasefire.... [more]

• These products could get hit hardest by Trump’s new Iran tariff threat. Imports from China could fall further if new 50% levies go through.... [more]

• Anthropic Claims Its New A.I. Model, Mythos, Is a Cybersecurity ‘Reckoning’. The company said on Tuesday that it was holding back on releasing the new technology but was working with 40 companies to explore how it could prevent cyberattacks..... [more]

• Meta Platforms (META.O), on Wednesday unveiled Muse Spark, the first artificial intelligence model from a costly team it assembled last year to catch up with rivals in the AI ​race. Shares of the company extended gains .... [more]

• Bad software loans could spark major turmoil in private credit, according to the top executive at a $24 billion asset manager. Bruce Richards, the chairman and CEO of Marathon Asset Management, said.... [more]

• Why SpaceX could trade like a meme stock after its blockbuster IPO. SpaceX has ‘a massive narrative, a founder with a loyal following, and a valuation likely driven in part by future potential,’ all ingredients for meme-like trading.... [more]

• Southwest Airlines is raising checked baggage fees by $10, less than a year after ending its “bags fly free” perk that long set it apart, as jet fuel costs have jumped since the start of the Iran war..... [more]

• Delta’s stock soars after a well-timed earnings report showed higher fuel costs weren’t an issue. Air carrier’s oil refinery helped reduce the fuel price paid per gallon in Q1 by more than 2%, and will provide a $300 million benefit.... [more]

• Jeff Shell steps down as Paramount president.... [more]

• Amazon and U.S. Postal Service Reach New Deal on Deliveries After Year of Talks. Amazon will cut the volume of packages it ships through the Postal Service by 20 percent under a tentative new deal.... [more]

• Brazil's government is preparing a new credit renegotiation program backed by federal guarantees to curb rising household ​debt, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said..... [more]

• Brazil’s Lula argues for ban on online betting platforms.... [more]

• What Iran ceasefire means for fuel prices, inflation and interest rates in the UK.... [more]

• Shares in Close ‌Brothers (CBRO.L), surged 23% on Wednesday after the British specialist lender estimated its hit from the market regulator's 9.1 billion pound ($12 billion) bill for mis-sold motor finance would be.... [more]

• The boss of the group that owns John Lewis and Waitrose had his basic pay rate increased by 21% last year while the retailer cut 3,300 jobs..... [more]

• UK builders report biggest leap in cost inflation on record, PMI shows.... [more]

• Pub group Young’s has agreed to snap up Cubitt House London Pubs, in a deal reportedly worth around £30 million. Young & Co’s Brewery told shareholders on Wednesday it has struck a deal.... [more]

• ‘We can’t increase prices any more’: UK hospitality firms hit by cost triple blow. Struggling pubs reel from rising business rates, wages and energy bills, with customers at limit of what they will pay.... [more]

• World Bank expects stronger exports to lift Western Balkans growth to average 3.1% in 2026-27.... [more]

• France’s budget minister said Wednesday it is too early to set a more ambitious deficit reduction target, despite a sharper-than-expected narrowing of the gap last year..... [more]

• Major global investment banks now expect China to keep official interest rates steady this year, scaling back earlier rate-cut calls, as the impact from the Middle East conflict appears ​limited.... [more]

• China’s Zhipu AI open-sources flagship model, raises prices to narrow gap with US rivals.... [more]

• Hyundai Reroutes Ships With Hormuz Blockage Disrupting Supplies.... [more]

• A subsidiary of a Hong Kong-based conglomerate started arbitration proceedings against Danish logistics and port group Maersk, accusing the company of aligning with Panama in a scheme to take over its port operations.... [more]

• More global firms eye Hong Kong for cheaper yuan loans, bonds: StanChart.... [more]

• India's central bank on ​Wednesday proposed to ease banks' capital adequacy norms ‌by waiving the requirement for lenders to maintain an investment fluctuation reserve..... [more]

• Explainer - Medha Singh, Echo Wang and Noel Randewich: How the math works on a $1.75 trillion SpaceX valuation.... [more]

• Comment/Analysis - Faisal Islam: Iran war pause is welcome but the economic scars will last. For most of the past six weeks, we have brought you maps of a gummed-up Strait of Hormuz..... [more]