WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
The Australian dollar is rallying and there's a chance it could break through the 76 US cents level this week.
At 0700 AEDT on Monday, the local unit was trading at 75.44 US cents, up from 74.87 US cents on Friday.
And the Australian share market looks set to open higher after the Dow and S&P 500 rallied to their best close of 2016 as investors embraced the European Central Bank's stimulus measures and steadying oil prices drove up energy shares.
At 0645 AEDT on Monday, the share price index was up 42 points at 5,222.
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ELSEWHERE:
LONDON - British Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne says he will announce further cuts to public spending this week to protect his austerity plan from a weakening of the economy, but said they would not be drastic.
TOKYO - The Bank of Japan's policy board is set to discuss this week whether to exempt $US90 billion ($A120.83 billion) in short-term funds from its newly imposed negative interest rate, people familiar with the matter say.
BEIJING - In a new effort to dispel anxiety about China's cooling economy, the central bank governor said on Saturday the country can hit this year's official growth target
BEIJING - Chinese banks have extended 726.6 billion yuan ($A150.10 billion) in net new yuan loans in February, missing expectations and pulling back from a lending splurge in January, even as the central bank promised to keep policy loose to support the slowing economy.
WASHINGTON - US import prices have fallen in February for an eighth straight month, weighed down by declining costs for petroleum and a range of other goods.
DHAKA - Investigators suspect unknown hackers managed to install malware in the Bangladesh central bank's computer systems and watched, probably for weeks, how to go about withdrawing money from its US account, two bank officials say.
OSLO - Italian firm Eni has begun producing oil from its Goliat field in the Norwegian Arctic, making it the world's most northerly oilfield in production.
WASHINGTON - At least three major US companies - AT&T Inc, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc and Marriott International Inc - are seeking to complete deals in Cuba as President Barack Obama prepares to visit Havana, a person familiar with the discussions says.
NEW YORK - BP Plc does not have to face US lawsuits by energy and drilling companies over losses they suffered from an offshore drilling ban imposed soon after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, a federal judge has ruled.
