Finance news you need to know today

CHINA is joining France and Britain in announcing plans to end sales of petrol and diesel cars in favour of electric technology.

THE Australian market looks set to open fractionally in the red, after Wall Street close mainly lower as investors brace for Hurricane Irma, close on the heels of devastating Harvey. At 0700 AEST on Monday, the share price futures index was down two points, or 0.04 per cent, at 5,667.

Meanwhile, the Australian dollar has slipped against a weakened greenback. The local currency was trading at 80.56 US cents at 0700 AEST on Monday, from 81.00 on Friday.

WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:

ATHENS — Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says the International Monetary Fund should decide whether it will fund Greece’s current bailout program by the end of the year and help Greece conclude a key bailout review on time.

WASHINGTON, DC — US President Donald Trump says he will ask the Republican- controlled Congress to further speed up its efforts to overhaul the US tax code, citing the potential impact of Hurricane Irma as a reason to hasten reforms.

LONDON — Tony Blair says the only way to make a success of Brexit is to turn Britain into a Singapore-style low-tax, low-regulation country competing with the European Union.

BEIJING — China is joining France and Britain in announcing plans to end sales of petrol and diesel cars. China’s industry ministry is developing a timetable to end production and sale of traditional fuel cars and will promote development of electric technology, state media on Sunday cited a Cabinet official as saying.

FRIDAY HIGHLIGHTS:

DOLLAR — A soaring Australian dollar pushed through the 81 US cent mark for the first time since January 2015, climbing more than one US cent in less than a day.

HOUSING FINANCE — Home loan approvals have shown a surprise lift in July, but the continuing decline in investor loans has underlined the effectiveness of recently- introduced lending controls.

CBA — Australia’s financial sector regulator has appointed three panel members to inquire into the Commonwealth Bank’s governance, culture and accountability.