Lowes Companies, Inc.

The Australian shares opened slightly higher today while bargain hunting Friday helped Wall Street snap the losing streak. Today both the S&P/ASX200 index and All Ordinaries index gained more than 0.8 per cent shortly after the market opened.

The Australian market declined for a fifth consecutive session on Thursday, even after a stronger-than-expected labour force report. The falls were led by resources shares and consumer discretionary. At the close, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index dropped 31.2 points, or 0.7 per cent, at 4606.7 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index lost 29.7 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 4622.9 points.

Wall Street maintained its positive run on Wednesday session as the Federal Reserve officials tipped that the central bank could keep interest rate at historical low level. The Chinese economic data released yesterday also added confidence to global recovery hopes. European markets also rallied on low interest rate expectations.

US stocks fell overnight in a choppy trade as the Federal Reserve announcement showed that the central bank remained cautious to the economy outlook. The Federal Reserve acknowledged the economy is emerging from recession, but maintained its near-zero interest rate and trillion-plus dollar effort to support the fragile recovery.

Wall Street closed modestly higher on Tuesday after positive US economic data. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke also said the "recession is very likely over at this point". US retail sales were surprisingly strong in August largely due to government's "cash for clunkers" program, but analysts warned that it may not represent a sustainable recovery in consumer spending.

US stocks ended flat overnight in light trade volumes as the market was awaiting the economic data this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged higher to its highest close in more than nine months.