AUSTRALIA

An economic indicator is information amassed and published by a government or private entity recording the activity in a particular economic sector, either in a specific industry or in an entire economy. Most indicators are statistical, but they can be anecdotal or subjective as well. Indicators are recorded and published on a regular basis by many organizations and are used by traders to assess the strengths or weaknesses of an economy, to predict future activity, to judge central bank policy, ...

The American whiskey market may be back on a roll. The industry which produces Jack Daniel's and Jim Beam is seeing sales flatten in its domestic market but overseas business is booming and driving overall growth.

The U.S. Federal Reserve must continue to prop up the economy for an extended period but can't do so indefinitely for fear of triggering an inflationary surge, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned on Thursday.

Country singer Taylor Swift has proven she has nothing to fear from touring after performing to sold-out crowds, so the 19 year-old said on Thursday she will extend her Fearless Tour into 2010.

British composer Andrew Lloyd Webber Thursday unveiled his latest musical Love Never Dies, a sequel to hit show The Phantom of the Opera which has played to more than 100 million people around the world.

The United States slipped from first to third place after the U.K. and Australia in a ranking of financial development released by the World Economic Forum on Thursday, as the global financial crisis badly hurt bank stability in developed countries.

Vaccination programs against H1N1 swine flu are under way in the United States, China and Australia and will begin soon in parts of Europe.

A new viewing platform has been opened at Uluru (Ayers Rock). The platform - named Talinguru Nyakunytjaku, or ‘place to look from the sand dune' in the Aboriginal

Undersea earthquakes caused panic in the South Pacific on Thursday, sending islanders fleeing to higher ground on fears of a second devastating tsunami in as many weeks, but a series of waves proved to be tiny and harmless.

Vaccination programs against H1N1 swine flu are under way in the United States, China and Australia and will begin soon in parts of Europe.

HSBC has resumed talks with Royal Bank of Scotland over the purchase of the remaining retail and commercial units that bailed-out RBS owns in Asia, sources said on Thursday.

An Australian talent show skit based around late pop star Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5 has backfired after U.S. guest star Harry Connick Jr called for an apology and viewers accused the program of racism.

Canada's dollar rose against theU.S. currency early on Thursday on the backdrop of highercommodity prices and growing expectations that domestic jobsdata due later this week could be better than expected.

The University of Queensland has advanced two places to be named 41st in the world in the UK's Times Higher Education-QS World University Rankings, released today.

The University of Sydney has improved its position in the prestigious Times Higher Education world rankings.

Methods used for analysing a person's risk of cardiovascular diseases are shedding new light on assessing and modifying a person's risk of depression, according to a study from The Australian National University.

Griffith University has leapt 34 places to be ranked 291st in the world by the prestigious Times Higher Education - QS World University Rankings announced today (October 8).

The University of Melbourne has jumped two places to No 36 - and again is the only Australian university to have all surveyed disciplines in the Top 30 in the world - in the Times Higher Education-QS (THE-QS) 2009 World University Rankings, released toda

There are some valuable lessons Americans can learn from Australia's health care system and vice versa, according to a Macquarie University academic and expert in the field.

Deaths from lung cancer are higher than for any other form of cancer, with more than 8,000 Australians diagnosed each year - but the latest technology being demonstrated at The University of Western Australia offers new hope to sufferers.

The composition of an Aussie loaf of bread will change forever this week, thanks to a new mandatory food standard - backed by University of Sydney research - which demands bakers replace salt they now use with iodised salt.