WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
The Australian dollar has rallied on the back of ongoing US dollar weakness.
At 0630 AEDT on Tuesday, the local unit was worth 78.86 US cents, up from 78.10 US cents, on Monday.
And the Australian share market looks set to open higher after Wall Street mostly rose as gains in consumer shares helped boost benchmarks back near records.
At 0645 AEDT on Tuesday, the June share price index futures contract was up eight points at 5,965.
ELSEWHERE:
FRANKFURT - The European Central Bank says it has bought 26.3 billion euros ($A36.9 billion) worth of bonds under its controversial quantitative easing program within the first 10 days.
MOSCOW - Russia is to pump about $US425 million ($A546 million) into fuelling its crisis-hit automobile industry as Volkswagen became the latest manufacturer to cut back operations in the country.
BERLIN - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have urged an end to the "stereotypes" that have threatened to rip the eurozone apart.
WASHINGTON - US home sales picked up slightly in February but remain sluggish due to tight inventories, affordability problems and nasty winter weather.
BEIJING - International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde has welcomed Beijing's creation of a new infrastructure bank.
NEW YORK - Shareholder payouts from S&P 500 companies hit unprecedented levels in 2014, thanks to record cash levels, according to a report from S&P Dow Jones Indices.
NEW YORK - Deutsche Bank is under investigation in New York state accused of rigging the Libor interest rate, a person familiar with the probe says.
PARIS - French energy company Total is seeking the equivalent of up to $US15 billion ($A19.27 billion) from Chinese investors to finance its part of the development of a giant gas field in Russia due to US sanctions, the Wall Street Journal reports.
WASHINGTON - Microsoft has unveiled partnerships with Samsung and other manufacturers to install its services including Word and Skype on devices powered by the rival Google Android system.
SAN FRANCISCO - Instagram has released a stand-alone application that makes it easy to create collages of iPhone pictures.
MILAN - The takeover of tyre maker Pirelli by a Chinese firm has sparked feelings of bitterness and resignation in Italy.
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