Finance news you need to know today

CHINA’S technology regulator is playing hardball over proposed internet rules that could block access to foreign websites.

A Chinese woman places flowers on the Google signboard outside the company's head office in Beijing.

1. SYDNEY — The Australian dollar has popped above 77 US cents as a dovish posture from the US central bank continues to rattle the greenback. At 7am on Thursday, the local unit was trading at 76.69 US cents, up from 76.42 cents on Wednesday.

2. SYDNEY — The Australian share market looks set to open sharply higher following gains on Wall Street as investors continue to react to Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen’s dovish comments on the US economy and interest rate rise prospects. At 6.45am on Thursday, the share price index was up 48 points at 5,041.

3. WASHINGTON — US companies added a solid 200,000 jobs in March, buoyed by strong gains in construction, retail and shipping, according to a private survey.

4. LONDON — Discount supermarket Aldi has recalled some biscuits and snacks due to possible “pest contamination”.

5. MIAMI — Carnival Corp has reported fiscal first-quarter net income of $US142 million ($A185.8 million).

6. LONDON — India’s Tata Steel is seeking to sell Britain’s biggest steelmaking business, putting thousands of jobs at risk.

7. SEOUL — Early indications of stronger-than-expected sales of new Galaxy S7 smartphones suggest technology giant Samsung Electronics Co Ltd is emerging from a two-year decline at its flagship mobile business.

8. BEIJING — China’s technology regulator has rejected criticism of proposed internet rules that could block access to foreign websites, insisting the measures are not just a covert way to tighten control over cyberspace.