Market Reports

• Australian Market Report: The Australian sharemarket has hit a 50-day high as investors sent shares soaring. The S&P/ASX 200 closed up sharply on Wednesday, gaining 147.4 points or 1.66 per cent to end the day at 9014.8..... [more]

• U.S. Market Report: The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq rose to their highest in one week on Wednesday, supported by a stronger-than-expected jobs data that pointed to a resilient U.S. economy, while the unemployment rate ticked lower in January..... [more]

• European Market Report: European stocks were mostly lower on Wednesday as investors digested mixed earnings results and awaited key U.S. jobs and inflation readings for direction..... [more]

• Asian Market Report: Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday as softer-than-expected U.S. retail sales data and growing unease over AI prompted traders to book some profits after recent gains..... [more]

Australian Business News

• Reserve Bank deputy governor Andrew Hauser has defended the RBA's unwillingness to criticise the spending choices of the Albanese government, saying it is not the job of "unelected officials" to do that..... [more]

• Australian dollar reaches '40-year high' against Japan's yen, as cheap holidays fuel tourism surge.... [more]

• Investors in Australia and New Zealand are braving the global trend of retreating from sustainable investment as they continue to pour money into environmental, social, and governance (ESG) funds despite accelerated pull back.... [more]

• Why REA looks cheap after a brutal selloff but AI risk remains. REA suffered a historic selloff last Friday, down as much as -17% after announcing a slightly weaker-than-expected first-half FY26 announcement..... [more]

• Westpac warns another rate hike is needed to bring inflation under control in sobering message for mortgage holders.... [more]

• Commonwealth Bank posts record half-year cash profit as investors pile into housing market.... [more]

• Here's everything you need to know about the new CBA dividend..... [more]

• Non-bank lender MoneyMe has reported solid growth across its loan book, revenue and credit quality for Q2 FY26 as scale benefits and disciplined execution of its growth strategy for the financial year flow through the business..... [more]

• Computershare Shares Slide Toward 52-Week Low Despite Solid Update.... [more]

• TMK Energy and Mongolia’s Ministry of Energy have inked a deal to jointly study the rapid take-up of natural gas in the nation’s energy mix, with potential to supercharge the company if coal seam gas is given the green light.... [more]

• Novo Resources has dusted off its Belltopper gold project in Victoria following a substantially boosted exploration target that now points to between 2.1 and 3.1 million tonnes of additional resource at high grades of 6.7 to 8.9 grams.... [more]

• Rio Tinto Ltd returned to the broker spotlight after UBS resumed coverage with a 'Neutral' rating and lifted its 12-month price target to 6,900p from 5,800p, even as the shares traded at 7,051p..... [more]

• BMG Resources is set to kick off a major 10,000m diamond drilling resource expansion program this month at its fully-owned Abercromby gold project, 30km southeast of Wiluna in WA’s eastern goldfields,.... [more]

• Silver’s slump led to refocus on gold. But rare earth neodymium is back at COVID highs.... [more]

• How RFK, China and leadership woes became a $4b storm for this Australian corporate giant. The worst US flu season in decades did not shield one of Australia’s largest companies, biotechnology firm CSL,.... [more]

• CSL loses $10 billion in vaccine crossfire after Trump Administration scepticism.... [more]

• CSL has suffered $1.6 billion in writedowns after the pharmaceutical giant’s shock decision to dump chief executive Paul McKenzie on the eve of its latest results release..... [more]

• Telstra to outsource up to 442 tech roles to Infosys.... [more]

• Opinion - Stephen Bartholomeusz: Fool’s gold: Trump’s bitcoin dream is turning into a nightmare. The bitcoin wipeout we just experienced was not a one-week phenomenon..... [more]

• Explainer - Luke Hartigan: What exactly is inflation, and are interest rates the only option for dealing with it?.... [more]

• Opinion - Greg Jericho: Will the government finally deliver a housing policy that stops making a bad situation worse? The 5% deposit guarantee has done what everyone expected to housing affordability.... [more]

World Business News

• Federal Debt to Hit Record Levels, Budget Office Warns. President Trump has reshaped the country’s economic policies, but the outlook for the budget remains dire..... [more]

• The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office’s 10-year outlook projects worsening long-term federal deficits and rising debt, driven largely by increased spending, notably on Social Security, Medicare, and debt service payments..... [more]

• America's consumer economy is pulling in opposite directions, a gulf increasingly apparent in C-suite commentary, with premium brands profiting from well-off customers while value-focused firms battle restraint from cash-strapped.... [more]

• U.S. unexpectedly adds 130,000 jobs in January after a weak 2025.... [more]

• US Energy Secretary Chris Wright visits Venezuela to assess oil industry overhaul.... [more]

• Stocks are headed for one last hurrah in the coming year before the AI-fueled rally unravels, according to one research firm. In recent client notes, Capital Economics said it believed the S&P 500 would likely rally.... [more]

• 20 stocks of companies that delivered a double dose of growth this earnings season. Companies in the S&P 500 achieving double-digit sales growth while improving profit margins include Palantir, Micron, Boeing and Alphabet.... [more]

• Kraft Heinz on Wednesday said it is pausing work on its previously announced plans to split the company. CEO Steve Cahillane, who joined Kraft Heinz in January, said in a statement that many of the company’s issues are “fixable.... [more]

• Activist investor Ancora Holdings has built a stake in Warner Bros Discovery (WBD.O), and plans to oppose the media company's deal with Netflix for its studios and streaming assets, in the latest twist to the heated Hollywood takeover.... [more]

• Uber sees opportunity, not threat, in robotaxis.... [more]

• Trinity Industries faces earnings test as manufacturing sags.... [more]

• Ford Motor (F.N), CEO Jim Farley told employees in a town hall on Wednesday that companywide bonuses would be set to 130%, according to four people familiar with the matter, as the automaker delivered on its goal.... [more]

• Novo Nordisk CEO Mike Doustdar on Wednesday said the company is aiming to capture around 15 million new patients, at least initially, when Medicare starts covering obesity treatments for the first time later this year..... [more]

• About 125 million people in the US watched the Super Bowl on Sunday night, making it the most-watched program in NBC’s 100-year history, the network said Tuesday..... [more]

• Mexican telecom giant America Movil (AMXB.MX), is preliminarily targeting a capital expenditure of 14%-15% of revenues for 2026 and the coming years, finance chief Carlos Garcia said on Wednesday,.... [more]

• Brazilian Fintech AGI Shares Fall 8% After $240 Million US IPO.... [more]

• European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde called on EU leaders on Wednesday to take urgent action in critical areas, including potentially divisive joint debt issuance, to make the bloc more resilient in turbulent times,.... [more]

• UK wealth manager and price comparison site shares fall amid AI fears.... [more]

• BP has reported a drop in annual profits and increased its target for cost cutting as the oil giant was hit by the fall in crude prices last year. It reported profits of $7.5bn (£5.5bn) in 2025, down from $8.9bn the year before.... [more]

• Oatly banned from using word ‘milk’ to market plant-based products in UK.... [more]

• Activist Elliott Builds Stake in London Stock Exchange Group.... [more]

• A British space company hoping to launch the first homegrown rocket from Scotland is on the brink of collapse, threatening 150 jobs and throwing doubt over the UK’s extraterrestrial ambitions. Orbex, .... [more]

• Poland’s $1 Trillion Economy Flexes Its Muscle in Germany. Companies from Eastern Europe’s regional powerhouse are making more and more acquisitions next door..... [more]

• Heineken is to cut up to 6,000 jobs globally over the next two years – close to 7% of its workforce – as the Dutch brewer struggles with falling demand for beer..... [more]

• Russian metal producer Nornickel's (GMKN.MM), 2025 net profit rose by 36% year-on-year to $2.47 billion, following higher prices for some metals and foreign‑exchange effects, the company said on Wednesday..... [more]

• China reminds Trump it holds the note on dollar debt. China’s advice to banks to curb US Treasury holdings shows Beijing’s de-dollarization drive may be gaining critical speed.... [more]

• China instructed banks to dial back their holdings of US Treasury debt this week, a move that sparked fresh conversations about "Sell America." Chinese regulators said the move was related to volatility.... [more]

• China’s AI industry looks unstoppable in the race to best US rivals. But is it?.... [more]

• Fosun Health to build first overseas hospitals in Indonesia amid Chinese ‘go global’ push.... [more]

• India's net direct tax collections rose 9.4% year-on-year to 19.4 trillion rupees ($213.91 billion) as of February 10, the government said in a statement..... [more]

• India's Patanjali Foods posts profit rise as tax cuts boost demand.... [more]