Australian retail sales expanded at the fastest pace in 19 months in September as consumers went on a buying frenzy for Apple's new phones, giving a sizable boost to the entire economy in the process.
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Lackluster demand for the ECB's new ultra-cheap loans on Thursday boosted bets it will have to overcome reservations about sovereign bond buying, and left markets eyeing the widening policy divergence from the United States.
The U.S. dollar slid while bonds and shares rallied in Asia on Monday after Lawrence Summers dropped from the race to be head of the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Australian job advertisements in newspapers and on the Internet fell for a third straight month in May, a potentially worrying omen for unemployment that will maintain pressure for another cut in interest rates.
