Daily FNArena News - Australia

Q3 construction work in Australia was much stronger than expected, painting a more positive picture of GDP growth for the September quarter.

Australian Wealth Management’s merger propoal with IOOF Holdings is seen as a win for both sides.

JP Morgan has suddenly become concerned over Leighton’s Middle East contracts and has taken a knife to its target price.

While earnings are tracking slightly below expectations brokers like that Axa Asia Pacific is unlikely to require a capital raising.

A report by BIS Shrapnel suggests extending the First Home Owner Boost Scheme could help not only the housing market but provide support for the overall economy.

Be careful what you read in the papers but always absorb the wisdom of those more experienced.

Macquarie’s result has, in the view of a number of brokers, shown enough that it should allay some concerns over the future viability of the group’s business model.

The Westpac-Melbourne Institute Leading Index fell sharply in September and bank chief economist Bill Evans suggests this implies weak growth through the first half of 2009.

The need for the recent run of big rate cuts is undeniable, that more cuts are coming is inarguable, so the question is: What is neutral?

James Hardie delivered a better than expected quarterly profit result but most brokers remain cautious as conditions simply continue to worsen.