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Just what the Reserve Bank wanted to see, another key housing statistic revealing a weak trend.

Confusion surrounds the proposed merger between Bendigo Mining and BCD Resources after a statement from Bendigo yesterday revealed a potential deal breaker.

More interest rate and currency speculation here and in the US and Europe this week with the minutes of the last Federal Reserve meeting in Washington expected to give a clue as to the timing of the next bout of quantitative easing, or more importantly, the likelihood of it happening.

No matter which way you look at it, the US jobs market is dead and won’t get better for more than a year.

Friday was a signal day for China. It had to contend with the bad news (for the Communist Party leadership) of a leading (and jailed) dissident winning the Nobel Peace Prize; but the day also brought the good news that the country’s international credit standing looks like being upgraded by one of the major ratings groups, Moody’s.

The US dollar fell, commodities and equity prices jumped and we can look forward to more of the same today and in coming weeks.

More interest rate and currency speculation here and in the US and Europe this week with the minutes of the last Federal Reserve meeting in Washington expected to give a clue as to the timing of the next bout of quantitative easing, or more importantly, the likelihood of it happening.

There’s a lot of talk, predictions, warnings about asset bubbles after so many market gurus, analysts and the like missed the one in American housing (and housing in Spain, the UK and Ireland).

America’s third quarter earnings reporting season kicked off overnight with the results from Alcoa.

It didn’t take long for the "rate rise looms" mob to get going yesterday after a two days of rest following the Reserve Bank’s surprise move not to boost its cash rate on Tuesday.

House prices falling, building approvals down, new home construction weak and little if any tax or stimulus help left to staunch the downturn.

Daunting would be one word to describe the task ahead of the Bank of Japan to reflate the Japanese economy, halt the appreciation of the yen and promote economic growth.

The International Monetary Fund expects the world economy to continue growing moderately in the next 18 months, but that forecast, made early today in its latest World Economic Outlook, hides some sharp swings.

Part of the fiction of a subdued retailing climate ignores the fact that selling new and used cars is part of retailing.

Two surveys out yesterday confirm that Australian job growth continues, via the internet, but at a slower pace than in previous month, while newspapers are now suffering another fall in employment ads.

The retail sales for August were solid in the minds of some analysts before the RBA decision and "weak" according to others after the 2.30 pm announcement.

A rise in iron ore and coal sales, plus the absence of the importation of jet fighters by the Defence department saw another strong trade surplus in August. 

OK, no ‘rate rise looms’ outcome from yesterday’s board meeting of the Reserve Bank, but we are still on notice that and increase/increases will come.

According to media reports from China, the government has lifted its estimate for economic growth this year to 9.5%, from the 9.1% recorded in 2009.

Australia’s biggest listed investment company, Australian Foundation Investment Co seems to have changed its investment focus.

The New Zealand Treasury has warned the impact of the receding drought, the slowing of the global economic recovery and the Christchurch earthquake may leave the economy ‘out of sync" with those of its major trading partners over the next few quarters.

Well, where to go first for guidance in the coming week?

Is there life after the recent near death experience for commercial property in Australia?

The Reserve Bank has given the Australian financial system, including the much talked about home loan sector, a big tick in its latest Financial Stability Report.

More upbeat news on gold (naturally) and some confidence about iron ore demand and therefore pricing (a bit of a surprise).

Gold made the headlines (but not in Australian dollars), copper made the gains, as did sugar and oil, while equity markets shrugged off September’s reputation for losses and posted very solid gains.

More evidence yesterday that the Australian housing sector is cooling and cooling faster than some critics think.

They are still believers in the recovery at the high end of Japanese business, which includes many of the companies that buy Australia’s resources in ever rising amounts.

The first of the two surveys of confidence on the performance of China’s huge manufacturing sector has shown a pick up in September.

Good news for Australia, the Asian Development Bank says Asia will grow a bit faster in the last half of 2010, while it sees mostly solid growth in 2011, compared with the upgraded estimates for the December half of this year.