Oceania

Australia to crack down on ‘significant abuse’ of immigration system

By Alasdair Pal SYDNEY, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Australia will address significant abuses of its visa system, the government said on Thursday, in a bid to crack down on human…

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New Zealanders start voting in Oct. 14 general election

By Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON, Oct 2 (Reuters) - New Zealanders on Monday started voting for a new government as advance in-person balloting opened ahead of the Oct. 14 general election.…

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Australia PM rallies support for Indigenous referendum as early voting starts

SYDNEY, Oct 2 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday he would focus on having one-on-one conversations with Australians to rally support for the Indigenous referendum, as…

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Australia swelters through ‘scorching’ heat lifting bushfire risk

SYDNEY, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Australia's southeast on Sunday sweltered in a heat wave that raised the risk of bushfires and led authorities to issue fire bans for large swathes…

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Record numbers of Australians enrol for referendum on Indigenous recognition

SYDNEY, Sept 22 (Reuters) - A record number of Australians have enrolled to vote next month in a referendum to recognise the country's Indigenous people in the constitution, according to…

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Strong winds fan bushfires as Australia battles spring heatwave

By Renju Jose SYDNEY, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Strong winds and a rare, intense heatwave in early spring fanned dozens of bushfires across Australia's southeast, prompting extreme fire danger warnings…

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New Zealand hit by magnitude 6.0 quake, no serious damage reported

By Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON, Sept 20 (Reuters) - A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck near Geraldine in the centre of New Zealand’s South Island on Thursday, government seismic monitor Geonet said…

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Australia swelters in spring heat wave, temperatures set to break records

By Renju Jose SYDNEY, Sept 18 (Reuters) - A spring heat wave across large parts of Australia's southeast, including Sydney, will intensify on Monday, the weather bureau said, with temperatures…

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Island states seek climate protection from Law of the Sea

The prime ministers of two small island nations that face ongoing impacts from rising sea levels appeared at legal hearings at an international court in Germany on Monday, and seek…

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Three rescued after sharks attack yacht off Australian coast

SYDNEY, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Three people on board a catamaran in the Coral Sea off the northeast coast of Australia have been rescued after the hulls of the vessel…

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More than half of Australians oppose Indigenous panel in constitution, poll shows

By Renju Jose SYDNEY (Reuters) - More than half of Australians would reject the inclusion of an Indigenous advisory panel in the constitution, a newspaper poll showed, as the government…

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Australia to make it a criminal offence to deliberately underpay workers

By Kirsty Needham SYDNEY, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Australia's Labor government will introduce legislation to close "loopholes" in workplace law, a move opposed by employer groups fearing higher costs, when…

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Australia notches warmest winter on record

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia recorded its warmest winter on record, its weather bureau said ahead of a widely anticipated decision over whether to declare El Nino conditions, which typically bring…

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Australia PM Albanese sets Oct 14 date for Indigenous referendum

Australians will vote on October 14 on whether they want to change the constitution to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait island people, a defining moment in the struggle for Indigenous…

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New Zealand plans digital services tax for multinationals from 2025

New Zealand said on Tuesday it would introduce legislation for a digital services tax on large multinational companies from 2025 after talks for a global rollout did not reach consensus…

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‘Tragic’ crash injures 23 US Marines in Australia exercises

SYDNEY, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Twenty-three U.S. Marines were injured during military exercises in northern Australia on Sunday, officials said, in a helicopter crash that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called…

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Point of no return: Australians fight for the right to work from home permanently

By Byron Kaye Australian federal workers have world's strongest WFH rights Employees globally want more WFH than their bosses - survey Office attendance remains far below 2019 levels - JLL…

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Australian prime minister raises prospect of early election over housing impasse

By Lewis Jackson SYDNEY, July 31 (Reuters) - Australia could go to an election more than a year ahead of schedule as opposition parties threaten to block a flagship housing…

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Australia’s Foreign Minister says Julian Assange case has ‘dragged on for too long’

SYDNEY, July 29 (Reuters) - Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Saturday the long-running case of imprisoned Wikileaks founder Julian Assange had gone on too long and needs to…

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Photo Story: At least 50 pilot whales dead in mass stranding, in Australia

A handout photo made available by Western Australia's state Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions shows a pod of whales swimming off the West Australian coast before stranding themselves on…

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Largest ever Australia-U.S. joint military exercise gets underway

SYDNEY, July 21 (Reuters) - Australia and the U.S. began two weeks of war games involving more than 30,000 troops and participants from 11 other countries on Friday, in a…

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Australia launches ‘national wellbeing’ dashboard to measure prosperity beyond GDP

By Wayne Cole and Alasdair Pal SYDNEY, July 21 (Reuters) - Australia on Friday launched a "national wellbeing" dashboard of indicators to measure progress on issues like health, education and…

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Two people, shooter dead in shooting in Auckland, New Zealand

SYDNEY, July 20 (Reuters) - New Zealand police said on Thursday that two people and the gunman were killed in a shooting at a construction site in Auckland, the country's largest city,…

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Deep-sea mining could impact tuna fisheries, study says

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Deep-sea mining could interfere with migration of tuna that is expected to be driven by climate change to areas of the Pacific Ocean currently slated for mining…

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Australia PM Albanese to push to overcome EU trade obstacles with Macron

Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said it was important for exporters to gain access to European markets under any EU free trade deal, and he would raise obstacles to an agreement in talks…

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New Zealand, EU ink historic trade deal

New Zealand and the European Union signed a free trade agreement overnight Sunday after negotiations were completed in 2022, with expectations it will come into force in the first half of…

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Australia PM’s Germany, NATO trip to focus on trade, security

SYDNEY, July 9 (Reuters) - Trade and security will be priorities for Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on a trip this week to meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and attend a NATO…

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Hotter, drier weather likely across Australia for winter and early spring

SYDNEY, June 29 (Reuters) - Dry and warm weather is forecast across large chunks of Australia through the southern hemisphere winter and into spring, the Bureau of Meteorology said on…

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Australia urged to ban online gambling ads to curb growing addiction

SYDNEY, June 28 (Reuters) - Australia should phase out advertising for online gambling in three years, a parliamentary committee of inquiry recommended on Wednesday as it looked to limit the…

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Australia to provide more armoured vehicles to Ukraine

By Alasdair Pal and Renju Jose SYDNEY, June 26 (Reuters) - The Australian government will provide a new A$110 million ($73.5 million) package to Ukraine including 70 military vehicles to…

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Australia says no threat from squatting Russian diplomat

By Alasdair Pal SYDNEY, June 23 (Reuters) - Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Friday the contested site of a proposed Russian embassy was secure, after it emerged a…

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Australia’s visa overhaul leaves Chinese millionaires in limbo

By Stella Qiu SYDNEY (Reuters) - In 2018 Paul Wang left his home in Beijing to start a new life in Australia, investing A$1 million ($680,000) in a food processing…

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Shock in Australia after bus accident kills 10 wedding guests in NSW

By Renju Jose SYDNEY, June 12 (Reuters) - At least 10 people died and 25 were injured after a chartered bus carrying wedding guests rolled off a ramp at a…

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Australia’s trade minister talks tough on EU trade

June 7 (Reuters) - Australia's trade minister Don Farrell has warned the European Union that he will not sign on a trade deal unless the bloc opens its market to…

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Australian woman pardoned after 20 years in jail for deaths of her four children

SYDNEY, June 5 (Reuters) - A woman imprisoned for 20 years over the deaths of her four children was pardoned by New South Wales state on Monday after a judicial…

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Australia hikes minimum wage as living costs surge

By Stella Qiu SYDNEY, June 2 (Reuters) - Australia will raise the minimum wage by 5.75% from July 1 as families grapple with soaring living costs, a decision that businesses…

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Australia says tougher laws needed on artificial intelligence

SYDNEY, June 1 (Reuters) - Australia said on Thursday it planned to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) including a potential ban on deep fakes and realistic-looking but false content, amid concerns…

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Leader of resource-rich Western Australia resigns due to burnout

By Alasdair Pal SYDNEY, May 29 (Reuters) - The leader of Western Australia resigned on Monday in a surprise announcement, citing exhaustion, after guiding the resource-rich state through the COVID…

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Australia is in a unique position to eliminate the bee-killing Varroa mite

Varroa mites – notorious honey bee parasites – have recently reached Australian shores, detected at the Port of Newcastle in New South Wales last year. If they establish here, there…

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UPDATED: Tsunami threat passes in South Pacific after magnitude 7.7 quake off New Caledonia

May 19 (Reuters) - The risk of tsunami waves across the South Pacific has passed and national warnings downgraded following a 7.7 magnitude earthquake on Friday southeast of the Loyalty…

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Australia employment unexpectedly drops

By Stella Qiu SYDNEY, May 18 (Reuters) - Australia employment unexpectedly dipped in April after two months of outsized gains, and the jobless rate also ticked up in a sign…

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Australia to deliver first budget surplus in 15 years

SYDNEY, May 8 (Reuters) - Australia is set to deliver its first budget surplus in 15 years on Tuesday, as its coffers bulge with tax windfalls from higher commodities prices…

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Australia pledges $10 billion in budget to ease cost of living

SYDNEY, May 8 (Reuters) - Australia's centre-left Labor government said on Monday it would include A$14.6 billion ($9.84 billion) over four years in the federal budget for cost of living…

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Australia’s Sydney Opera House won’t light up for coronation to save costs

SYDNEY, May 6 (Reuters) - A decision not to light up the sails of the Sydney Opera House to mark the coronation of King Charles was a cost saving measure,…

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Republican leaders of Australia and NZ to pledge allegiance to king

By Alasdair Pal and Lucy Craymer SYDNEY/WELLINGTON, May 5 (Reuters) - The leaders of Australia and New Zealand will pledge their allegiance to King Charles at his coronation in London…

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Australia PM says ‘frustrated’ over continued detention of Julian Assange

SYDNEY, May 5 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Friday he was frustrated for not yet finding a diplomatic fix over the continued detention of Julian Assange…

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Australia aims to start making guided missiles within two years

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia said on Wednesday it would start domestic manufacture of guided missiles by 2025, two years sooner than expected, in a wide-ranging shakeup of defence arrangements to…

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Less rainfall and warmer weather ahead – Australian weather bureau

SYDNEY, April 27 (Reuters) - Australia is set for a drier and warmer start to winter, with even odds for the El Nino weather pattern, the weather bureau said on…

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Australia to overhaul immigration system, smooth entry for skilled workers

SYDNEY, April 27 (Reuters) - Australia proposed on Thursday overhauling its immigration system to speed up getting highly skilled workers into the country and smoothening the path to permanent residency.…

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Former NZ PM Jacinda Ardern accepts Harvard fellowships

By Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON, April 26 (Reuters) - Former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Wednesday that she was taking up three fellowships at Harvard University later in…

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Australia to prioritise long-range strike capability in defence shakeup

CANBERRA, April 24 (Reuters) - Australia's government will prioritise long-range precision strike, domestic production of guided weapons, and diplomacy - key points of a review released Monday recommending the country's…

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Australia says discovery of WW2 shipwreck ends ‘tragic’ maritime chapter

SYDNEY, April 22 (Reuters) - Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Saturday that the wreck of a Japanese merchant ship, sunk in World War Two with 864 Australian soldiers…

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Barry Humphries, creator of Dame Edna, dies at 89

April 22 (Reuters) - Barry Humphries, the comedian best known for his character Dame Edna Everage who blossomed from an Australian suburban housewife into a self-described gigastar, died on Saturday,…

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Australia introduces vehicle pollution rules to boost EV uptake

By Praveen Menon SYDNEY, April 19 (Reuters) - Australia said on Wednesday it would introduce new standards targeting vehicle emissions to boost the uptake of electric cars, as it looks…

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Australia’s northwest braces for strongest cyclone in a decade

By Renju Jose SYDNEY, April 13 (Reuters) - Australia's northwest region, home to the world's largest export hub for iron ore, could be hit by the most powerful tropical cyclone…

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Australia tells exporters to diversify from top trade partner China

By Kirsty Needham SYDNEY, April 12 (Reuters) - Australia wants exporters to diversify markets and become less reliant on China, because it cannot separate economic and strategic relationships, Foreign Minister…

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New Zealand intelligence service says foreign interference attempts ‘persistent’

By Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON (Reuters) - Attempts by some countries to interfere with New Zealand's democracy, economy and civil society "are persistent", according to New Zealand Security Intelligence Service's (NZSIS)…

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