WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
The Australian dollar is just a touch lower after two sets of US economic data pulled the currency in opposite directions in overnight trade.
At 0630 AEST on Friday, the local unit was trading at 93.97 US cents, slightly down from 94.01 cents on Thursday.
The Australian market looks set to open lower after Wall Street suffered hefty losses as the US partial government shutdown continued and worries climbed that the nation may default.
At 0711 AEST on Friday, the December share price index futures contract was down 30 points at 5,200.
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ELSEWHERE:
WASHINGTON - The political crisis gripping Washington could trigger a "catastrophic" US debt default the Treasury has warned as America limped into day three of a government shutdown.
WASHINGTON - International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde has warned that a US failure to raise the debt ceiling, which could lead to default, could wreak havoc on the global economy.
WASHINGTON - US claims for unemployment insurance rose slightly last week but continued to point to a slowly improving job market.
WASHINGTON - The US services sector, the bulk of the economy, slowed sharply in September after two months of accelerating activity, according to the Institute for Supply Management.
BRUSSELS - Eurozone business activity continued to pick up in September, hitting a 27-month high, with an improved performance from Europe's battered south feeding hopes of a continued recovery.
MADRID - A simple typographical error boosted Spain's 2014 public debt forecast by 10 billion euros ($A14.53 billion), the government has admitted.
LISBON - Fresh austerity measures proposed by bailed out Portugal have won the approval of the country's EU-IMF creditors, but a request to ease deficit goals was refused.
LONDON - Britain has unveiled measures to curb lenders that offer short-term loans at high rates, with regulators insisting that consumers must be subjected to stricter affordability tests.
NEW YORK - Massachusetts has fined Citigroup $US30 million ($A32 million) for improperly releasing market-sensitive information on an Apple supplier to large clients including hedge fund SAC Capital Advisors.
SAO PAULO - French insurance giant AXA is holding talks about a return to the Brazilian market, the South American country's insurance regulator Susep says.
JOHANNESBURG - Mining giant Anglo American Platinum says it is losing an average of 3,100 ounces of production a day since the beginning of a strike over job cuts last week.
PARIS - French politicians have approved a bill that will prevent Amazon from offering free deliveries of discounted books in a move branded discriminatory by the American online retail giant.
