Finance news you need to know today

A FREE-SPEECH group has sued US President Donald Trump for blocking Twitter users from his @realDonaldTrump account.

THE Australian market looks set to open flat following Wall Street’s lead with two of its main indexes closing little changed. At 0700 AEST on Wednesday, the share price futures index was down five points, or 0.09 per cent, at 5,670.

Meanwhile, the Australian dollar is sharply higher against its US counterpart which fell to a one-week low following the Trump emails. The local currency was trading at 76.34 US cents at 0700 AEST on Wednesday, from 76.18 on Tuesday.

WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s eldest son has tweeted an email chain which shows him discussing plans to hear damaging information on Hillary Clinton described as “part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr Trump”.

LONDON — Britain is planning for all eventualities in Brexit talks with the European Union, Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokeswoman says after being asked whether the government had prepared for leaving the bloc without a deal.

BERLIN — Britons living in the European Union shouldn’t fear being sent home after Brexit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel says, with the rights Britain granted residents from EU countries to be “largely reciprocated”.

BERLIN — German luxury sports carmaker Porsche has turned in the most successful half year in its corporate history thanks to its SUV Macan model and surging demand in its biggest market — China.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A free-speech group has sued US President Donald Trump for blocking Twitter users from his @realDonaldTrump account, arguing the practice violates the First Amendment of the US Constitution.

TUESDAY HIGHLIGHTS:

SLATER — Thousands of out-of-pocket Slater and Gordon shareholders’ will split a $36.5 million settlement — just a fraction of the total value shed by the once high- flying law firm.

VOCUS — Asian private equity firm Affinity Equity Partners has tapped into a $2.2 billion bidding war for Australia’s fourth-biggest telecommunications company Vocus Group, rivalling a similar offer from the US.

HOUSING — The value of loans to property investors continues to fall, underlining the effectiveness of regulatory measures introduced to cool the housing market.

CONSUMER — Consumer sentiment has slipped over the past week, reversing the previous week’s bounce, with less optimism about economic conditions amid continuing weakness in wage growth.

BELLAMYS — Infant formula supplier Bellamy’s says Chinese authorities are looking at the company’s Camperdown Powder canning line in Victoria after a third-party’s allegations relating to historical filing and records and to certain previous quality issues relating to it.

METCASH — Food and grocery wholesaler Metcash has appointed former British supermarket giant Tesco executive Jeff Adams as its next CEO.

ARISTOCRAT — Aristocrat Leisure’s chief financial officer is stepping down after deciding not to relocate with the company from Sydney to Las Vegas.