WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:
The Australian dollar has plummeted as commodities slide.
At 0700 AEDT on Thursday, the local unit was trading at 75.22 US cents, down from 76.12 cents on Wednesday.
And the Australian share market looks set to open sharply lower after Wall Street fell, dragged down by plunging commodity prices amid cautious trade following the suicide bombings in Belgium.
At 0645 AEDT on Thursday, the share price index was down 27 points at 5,105.
ELSEWHERE:
BEIJING - China has offered $US11.5 billion ($A15.1 billion) in loans and credit lines to five Southeast Asian countries for infrastructure and other projects.
SHANGHAI - The World Bank has approved a $US500 million ($A656.25 million) loan to China to support financing of projects to help control air pollution in and around Beijing.
HARARE - Zimbabwe will from April 1 cancel licences for foreign firms, including those operating mines and banks, that have not complied with a law to sell majority shares to locals, Empowerment Minister Patrick Zhuwao says.
GENEVA - Credit Suisse is announcing new steps in its restructuring with greater cost cuts and plans to reduce head count by another 2000.
NEW YORK - Richard Branson-backed Virgin America is considering selling itself or a part of the company after it received buyout interest, Bloomberg reports.
LONDON - A British judge has approved a US request for the extradition of a London-based trader accused of contributing to the 2010 Wall Street "flash crash" by placing bogus orders to spoof the market.
NEW YORK, March 23 AP - Amazon.com is suing its one-time logistics chief a month after he was hired by Target, saying he's violated a non-compete clause that prohibits him from joining a rival for at least 18 months.
TEL AVIV - Israel's Cellebrite, a mobile forensic software provider, is helping the FBI's attempt to unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino, California shooters, the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper has reported.
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