Finance News Update, what you need to know

WORLD FINANCE UPDATE:

The Australian dollar has fallen slightly, ending its rally on increased global risk appetite the day before.

At 0630 AEDT on Wednesday, the local unit was trading at 90.18 US cents, down from 90.26 cents on Tuesday.

And the Australian share market looks set to open flat following falls on international markets after a report showing a dip in US home prices and on worries about China.

At 0645 AEDT on Wednesday, the March share price index futures contract was up one point at 5,411.

ELSEWHERE:

WASHINGTON - US consumers grew less confident in the economy in February as concerns grew about the future pace of growth, The Conference Board says.

WASHINGTON - US home prices fell for the second straight month in December, the S&P/Case-Shiller index shows, in a fresh sign of a slowdown in the housing market recovery.

KIEV - Western diplomats have scrambled to stave off an economic collapse in Ukraine, as Russia pledged not to intervene in the crisis-hit country after the dramatic ouster of pro-Moscow leader Viktor Yanukovych.

BRUSSELS - The European Union has upgraded its economic forecasts, betting that a modest recovery is now sustainable as member states push ahead with reforms.

BRUSSELS - Greece is back in the black for the first time since 1948, the EU's economics commissioner Olli Rehn says, as figures show the economically-hobbled nation returning to growth.

MADRID - Spain will raise its economic growth forecast for 2014 to 1.0 per cent and sees growth picking up to 1.5 per cent in 2015, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says.

LONDON - Britain's rain-lashed high streets have overcome exceptional wet weather and floods to post the highest rise in sales for more than a year and a half.

NEW YORK - US banking giant JPMorgan Chase will cut 5000 jobs from its global workforce this year.

JAKARTA - Russian firms plan to invest up to $US6 billion ($A6.6 billion) in Indonesia's mining sector this year, Jakarta says, despite its recent mineral export ban that has worried foreign investors.

TOKYO - The website of Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange MtGox went down amid reports of a theft of the virtual currency worth hundreds of millions of dollars, dealing a blow to its credibility.