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Finance News Update, what you need to know

WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:

The Australian dollar is hovering below 89 US cents in the absence of any major economic news or data.

At 0630 AEST on Thursday, the local currency was trading at 88.83 US cents, up from 88.81 cents on Wednesday.

And the Australian share market looks set to open higher following solid gains on Wall Street as a strong housing report helped equities regain ground.

At 0645 AEST on Thursday, the December share price index futures contract was up 24 points at 5,403.

ELSEWHERE:

ZURICH - The world's largest temporary work agency, Adecco, has warned that economic uncertainty in Europe meant companies were hiring fewer employees.

NEW DELHI - India's top court has cancelled more than 200 government permits for coalmines and handed down fines worth hundreds of millions of dollars to some companies after the licensing process was deemed illegal.

TOKYO - Japan has hit Russia with further sanctions over the crisis in Ukraine, in a further blow to efforts to end a longstanding territorial row between the pair.

SEOUL - About 40,000 Hyundai workers have launched a partial strike over a wage row fuelled by union anger at the South Korean carmaker's $US10 billion bid for a plot of land in Seoul.

WASHINGTON - US sales of new homes surged in August, led by a wave of buying in the west and northeast.

NEW YORK - Wal-Mart Stores have taken another step into banking, unveiling a no-fee electronic cheque account aimed at simplifying money management for customers without traditional bank accounts.

PARIS - European jet maker Airbus is raising its long-term forecast for new aeroplane demand by more than seven per cent, based on expected orders of smaller, more fuel-efficient planes and burgeoning travel in Asia.

TOKYO - Japan Airlines, or JAL, says personal information of up to 750,000 customers of its miles program had been leaked due to a cyber attack, without confirming if banking details had also been affected.