US stocks have closed higher on encouraging signs from Europe and a report that unemployment claims are starting to slow.

The Australian share market is looking for a catalyst to push forward after a modestly good season for company earnings reports.

US stocks have finished lower following Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke's forecast of continued sluggish growth.

The Australian share market closed higher on Wednesday, boosted by encouraging economic data from Japan and South Korea and slightly stronger retail sales data ..

The Dow Jones industrial average on Tuesday finally reclaimed the ground it held before the carnage of the Great Recession – bailouts bank failures layoff..