Shares of Apple tumbled 4.3 per cent and Microsoft fell 3.7 per cent as disappointing earnings from the two technology titans weighed on the broader market.
There's no sign that the Reserve Bank of Australia is getting ready to cut interest rates but, judging by the minutes of its latest policy meeting, it's in even less of a hurry to raise them.
The Australian dollar is lower against the greenback as traders look ahead to the release of minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia's July meeting.
Australia's biggest banks will need to hold billions of dollars in extra capital against their home loans, following a move by the banking regulator to strengthen the country's financial system.
The corporate watchdog has permanently banned local brokers Eric-John Pryor and Peter McDonald from providing credit and financial services after being found to have engaged in misconduct when brokering car financing for a business in Victoria Park.
The Australian dollar is lower against the greenback which has lifted after Greece revamped its government in an attempt to enforce conditions attached to a third debt bailout.
The Australian share market has closed higher, with a collective sigh of relief from investors after the Greek parliament approved that nation's bail-out conditions.
US stocks have finished modestly lower, snapping a four-day winning streak after violent protests outside the Greek parliament revived anxiety about the eurozone.
