WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
The Australian dollar has weakened following Wednesday's disappointing economic growth figures and a resurgence of the US dollar.
At 0630 AEDT on Thursday, the local currency was trading at 78.14 US cents, down from 78.23 cents on Wednesday.
And the Australian share market looks set to open flat after falls on Wall Street following dull US data on hiring and vehicle sales underscored the feeling of caution.
At 0645 AEDT on Thursday, the share price index futures contract was down one point at 5,882.
ELSEWHERE:
WASHINGTON - The US economy's service sector sped up very slightly in February despite the West Coast port slowdown and harsh weather in the east, the Institute for Supply Management reports.
WASHINGTON - US private-sector firms hired new staff at a modest pace in February, but the previous two months were much better than previously reported, payrolls company ADP says.
LONDON - The 19-country eurozone's economy is kicking into a higher gear thanks to falling oil prices and the lower euro, but the recovery is still far short of that experienced by the US.
LONDON - Britain's state-rescued Royal Bank of Scotland will axe up to 14,000 jobs by 2019 in a retreat from investment banking, the Financial Times reports.
LUXEMBOURG - Britain has won a court challenge against a European Central Bank ruling that required banks to base clearing houses dealing with euros in the eurozone.
MOSCOW - Russia's state-controlled energy giant Rosneft says its annual net profit for 2014 was down by nearly 10 per cent after Russia's economy took a battering from plunging oil prices and Western sanctions over Ukraine.
NEW YORK - US oil giant ExxonMobil says it will reduce investment spending by nearly 12 per cent this year in response to lower crude-oil prices.
PARIS - French nuclear group Areva has confirmed record net losses in 2014 of 4.8 billion euros ($A6.86 billion) after it was forced to absorb costs linked to project delays.
HONG KONG - Asia-focused Standard Chartered bank says net profit fell 37 per cent in 2014, the second consecutive year of decline, almost a week after announcing two of its top bosses would leave in a reshuffle aimed at transforming its fortunes.
WASHINGTON - The Republican-controlled Senate has failed to override President Barack Obama's veto of a bill approving the Keystone XL oil pipeline.
WASHINGTON - Fast-food giant McDonald's says it will stop serving chicken raised with antibiotics that are important to human health, as worries grow over resistance to crucial drugs.
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