WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
The Australian dollar fell to a two and a half month low after the head of the Reserve Bank said he has an open mind on intervening to get the currency lower.
At 0630 AEDT on Friday, the local unit was trading at 92.23 US cents, down from 93.04 cents on Thursday.
In early morning trade, the Australian dollar fell as low as 91.99 US cents, its weakest level since September 9.
And the Australian share market looks set to rise when it opens as Wall Street is higher on encouraging jobs data.
At 0644 AEDT on Friday, the December share price index futures contract was up 40 points at 5,341.
ELSEWHERE:
WASHINGTON - First-time claims for US unemployment benefits fell last week to their lowest level in two months as the recovery in the jobs market grinds forward, according to government data.
WASHINGTON - US producer prices fell for the second consecutive month in October as energy costs eased, the Labor Department says.
WASHINGTON - The US government expects to sell its remaining stake in bailed-out General Motors by the end of the year, the Treasury Department says.
WASHINGTON - The Senate Banking Committee has approved Janet Yellen to chair the US Federal Reserve, setting up a likely confirmation by the full chamber next month.
BERLIN - The European Central Bank has not taken any new decisions on the level of its interest rates since it cut them earlier this month, ECB chief Mario Draghi says.
MADRID - International credit rating agency Moody's has warned that Spain's banks still face significant challenges, despite nearly completing a 41-billion-euro ($A59 billion) eurozone-financed bailout.
ROME - Italy will sell stakes in eight companies, including energy giant Eni, in a "first packet of privatisations", Prime Minister Enrico Letta has announced.
BEIJING - China and the European Union have begun talks on a landmark investment agreement, a positive move amid lingering trade tensions between the two sides.
WASHINGTON - The International Monetary Fund says it sees no near-term "acute" financing pressures on Greece, despite a delay in the release of the next loan instalment under its international bailout.
PRETORIA - South Africa's Reserve Bank has kept interest rates at 5.0 per cent as expected as it wrestles with a sluggish economy and dysfunctional manufacturing sector.
GENEVA - Switzerland wants "to settle the past" with the EU and begin settling disputes over Swiss bank accounts hidden from European tax authorities, the country's finance minister says.
BUENOS AIRES - Argentina will continue to intervene in the economy, including the foreign exchange markets, President Christina Kirchner's new chief of staff Thursday.
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