Markets Live: ASX retreats, $A jumps

• Live

The ASX sported small losses on the last trading session of a holiday-shortened week, while the Aussie dollar jumped higher.

David Jones' value slashed by a third

South African retailer Woolworths Holdings has written down the value of its $2.2 billion investment in David Jones by a third, as the department store's fortunes continue to wane. 

What the nation's best investors are buying this year, and why

The latest Mercer survey reveals the roosters and feather dusters among Aussie equity managers in 2017.

8@eight: ASX set to open lower

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The local sharemarket is poised to open lower on the back of retreats on global markets, with futures pointing to a 14-point drop.

Trans-Pacific trade pact to be signed without US

Eleven countries, including Australia, have agreed on an Asia-Pacific trade pact, forging ahead despite the United States pulling out.

Euro zone businesses start 2018 on decade high

Euro zone businesses have been ramping up activity at the fastest rate since the middle of 2006, according to a survey.

Australia is attracting more of the world's wealthy migrants than any other country

Australia is attracting more high net worth individuals (HNWI) as migrants than any other country, according to a new report.

'I really like what he's done': Wall Street CEOs cozy up to Trump ahead of Davos appearance

Donald Trump can expect a warm welcome from some big Wall Street names when he arrives in Davos. 

Merkel tells Davos isolation not the answer

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has told the World Economic Forum in Davos that isolationism and protectionism were not solutions to the economic challenges facing countries around the world.

GE posts $10 billion loss

The deterioration of its power business contributed to General Electric's $10 billion loss in the latest quarter.

Australian dollar shoots to four-month high

The Australian dollar surged more than 1 per cent, before easing, after US officials signalled their openness to a weaker greenback.

'America First' team at odds with European leaders in Davos

President Donald Trump's economics team landed in Davos, bringing with them their boss's "America First" agenda.

Etihad grounds Airbus cargo jets as strategy review continues

The grounding and review come in the wake of the Persian Gulf carrier's biggest ever loss.

How about showing us what we're about to sign?

• COMMENT

What's in it for Australia? There's no way to tell until we've seen the text, and we won't see it until after it's signed, in Chile on March 8.

Wind farms power big surge in renewable energy jobs

Green energy jobs have surged, as wind power becomes the dominant clean energy source in Australia.

Trade deal risks a 'noodle bowl' of agreements, warns business

The TPP risks falling into a complex "noodle bowl" of trade agreements unless Australia's bilaterals with eight of the countries are torn up, a leading business lobby group says, pouring cold water on the economic promise of the scheme amid calls for a full Productivity Commission review of its merits.

Seven snaps up The Simpsons in deal with Murdoch's Fox

Iconic animated show The Simpsons, long a part of Network Ten, has found a new home with Seven West Media.

China's Wanda seals deal to sell Australian property assets

One of China's biggest property developers, Wanda, has said it has disposed of its flagship Australian property assets.

Wage cop sues ex Caltex franchisee for allegedly falsifying documents

The Fair Work Ombudsman has launched court action against a member of the family that was once behind its largest franchisee network.

Teslas are going to get cheaper, but not because of the government

The mini-furore over government support for EVs is a sign of how poisonous Australia's energy wars have become.

ASX extends solid gains

Investors in Australian shares pushed the market higher amid ongoing optimism for economic growth at home and overseas.

Markets Live: ASX stretches out gains

Investors in Australian shares pushed the market back to levels last seen at the middle of January on Wednesday, amid ongoing optimism for economic growth at home and overseas.

Tech company GetSwift's troubles could torpedo ex AFL player's fortune

Joel MacDonald was a $120 million man. Now his software company Getswift facing serious questions about important contracts.

Bankrupt billionaire Nathan Tinkler charged after allegedly smashing a window at his sister's house

Bankrupt former billionaire Nathan Tinkler is embroiled in a family feud that has seen him charged with allegedly smashing a stained glass window at his sister's house.

Most big bank planners fail to act in their client's interests - ASIC

Most big bank financial planners failed to comply with a duty to act in customers' best interests when telling people to put their super in an in-house fund.

Money talk: Davos after dark is wild parties, wild schmoozing

The World Economic Forum's annual meeting is as much about schmoozing as speeches.

Shellharbour sushi store fined $200,000 for ripping off workers

Three foreign workers were underpaid at total of $51,025 between September 2014 and July 2015.

World must 'wake up to threat' posed by Google, Facebook, warns billionaire

Silicon Valley billionaire Marc Benioff has compared the current crisis of trust facing the tech giants to the financial crisis of a decade ago, urging regulators to wake up to the threat from Google, Facebook, and the other dominant firms.

Santos slashes $1bn from debt as revenues spike

Santos has driven down debt by nearly a billion dollars as revenues spike, but this may not be enough to renew interest in its $11bn takeover bid.