WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
The Australian dollar has bounced back after plunging to near six-year lows following the Reserve Bank's decision to cut rates.
At 0630 AEDT on Wednesday, the local currency was trading at 77.86 US cents, up from 76.63 cents on Tuesday.
And the Australian share market looks set to open higher following the Reserve Bank of Australia rate cut.
At 0645 AEDT on Wednesday, the March share price index futures contract was up 95 points at 5,738.
ELSEWHERE:
ROME - Greece has begun floating proposals to restructure rather than cancel part of its crippling foreign debt, boosting stock markets as hopes rose for a deal with its European Union partners.
ATHENS - The Greek stock market has soared more than 11 per cent, as the new government continues its tour of EU capitals to seek support for its plans to renegotiate Greece's huge international bailout.
WASHINGTON - Orders to US factories dropped for a fifth consecutive month in December, while a key category that signals business investment plans fell for a fourth straight month.
MADRID - Spain's jobless queue in the traditionally tough month of January has shrunk compared with a year earlier, at its fastest rate in 16 years, government data shows.
NEW YORK - Standard & Poor's is paying about $US1.38 billion ($A1.77 billion) to settle US government allegations that it knowingly inflated its ratings of risky mortgage investments that helped trigger the financial crisis.
MADRID - The eurozone's biggest bank, Santander of Spain, says its profits surged by nearly 40 per cent in 2014, led by its activity in Britain and Brazil.
LONDON - BP has sounded a sombre note on the oil industry, saying producers may have to adjust to an extended period of lower prices, as the company reports a fourth-quarter loss of $US4.4 billion ($A5.64 billion).
DETROIT - Car makers have reported double-digit US sales increases in January, a sign that car sales didn't spin out even with a major snowstorm hitting the northeast.
PITTSBURGH - Ride-sharing service Uber is partnering with Carnegie Mellon University on a Pittsburgh research lab both hope could lead to the development of driverless cars.
SAN FRANCISCO - Twitter has unveiled plans to sell ads that run outside its own platform in what could be the start of a broader advertising network.
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