WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
A surge in oil prices has buoyed he Australian dollar ahead of the UK's Brexit referendum vote this week.
At 0700 AEST on Monday, the local unit was trading at 74.34 US cents, up from 73.79 cents on Friday.
The Australian share market looks set to open flat after Wall Street closed lower as Apple dragged down major indices and investors girded for Britain's vote on its European Union membership.
At 0645 AEST on Monday, the share price index was steady at 5,117.
ELSEWHERE:
LONDON - David Cameron and George Osborne have issued an impassioned appeal for a vote for Remain, warning that leaving the EU would be the "big mistake" putting Britain's prosperity at risk.
SAO PAULO - Brazil's Environment Ministry has fined mining company Samarco 142 million reais ($A56.29 million) for damages to three protected areas resulting from a tailings dam burst in November, the ministry says.
SMEDEREVO - Serbia could play a significant role in Beijing's ambitious plan for a new "Silk Road" to boost trade with Europe, Asia and Africa, Chinese President Xi Jinping says.
DUBAI - Iran has reached a deal to buy 100 planes from US planemaker Boeing, and the two sides are awaiting approval by US Treasury authorities, the head of Iran's Civil Aviation Organisation says.
BEIJING - China's home prices rose 6.9 per cent in May, accelerating from the previous month's 6.2 per cent gain, an official survey says, boosted by price increases in second-tier cities which are fuelling overheating concerns.
MUMBAI - India's central bank governor Raghuram Rajan, who has faced criticism from members of the ruling party for keeping interest rates too high, has stunned officials by announcing he would step down when his term ends on September 4.
