Oceania

08

Jun

Australia accuses Airbnb of misleading customers on price

June 8 (Reuters) - Australia's antitrust regulator has filed a lawsuit against Airbnb Inc ABNB.O, accusing the accommodation-sharing website of misleading users into paying more than advertised for their stays, widening its scrutiny…

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Australian PM in Indonesia for talks on investment, climate change

JAKARTA, June 6 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was in Indonesia on Monday to meet its President Joko Widodo and shore-up relations between the two neighbours, in his first bilateral…

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Australia PM honours Queen Elizabeth amid renewed republican debate

SYDNEY, June 4 (Reuters) - Australia's new prime minister honoured Queen Elizabeth in Canberra on Saturday amid celebrations for her 70 years on the throne and renewed debate about Australia…

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Australia’s new PM backs wage hike to ease inflation pain

SYDNEY, June 3 (Reuters) - Australia's new centre-left Labor government on Friday proposed raising the minimum wage to ease the financial burden on families hit by soaring energy prices and a spike…

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Australia, NZ hail Queen Elizabeth as republican question returns

SYDNEY, June 3 (Reuters) - Australia's new prime minister joined more than 50 Commonwealth leaders in paying tribute to Queen Elizabeth amid celebrations of her 70 years on the throne but added…

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Australia set for 3rd year of bumper wheat harvests, easing world supply woes

SINGAPORE, June 2 (Reuters) - Australia is poised for a third year of near-record wheat production in 2022 as good weather boosts planting across its grain belt, easing concerns over tight global…

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UPDATED: Australia PM Albanese appoints record number of women to diverse cabinet

SYDNEY, June 1 (Reuters) - Australia's new federal ministry was sworn into office on Wednesday, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese appointing a record number of women to a diverse cabinet team that…

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Photo Story: Opening of Vivid Sydney 2022 festival

Projections illuminate the Sydney Opera House during the opening of the Vivid Sydney 2022 festival, in Sydney, Australia, 27 May 2022. Vivid Sydney is an annual festival of light, music…

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Australia’s new PM Albanese sworn in

SYDNEY, May 23 (Reuters) - Australia's Labor Party leader, Anthony Albanese, was sworn in as the country's 31st prime minister on Monday, promising to bring the country together after a fractious election campaign…

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UPDATED: Australia ousts conservatives after nine years, PM Morrison concede

SYDNEY, May 21 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison conceded defeat in an election on Saturday and the opposition Labor Party was set to end almost a decade of conservative rule,…

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Australia election: What you need to know

SYDNEY, May 21 (Reuters) - Voting in most Australian states has closed on Saturday with opinion polls showing the opposition Labor Party narrowly ahead of Prime Minister Scott Morrison's conservative…

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FACTBOX-Australian democracy at a glance

SYDNEY, May 20 (Reuters) - Australians will vote in a general election on Saturday. The two main groups are the ruling conservative Liberal-National coalition and the opposition Labor Party, and there is…

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Cost of living in focus as Australia’s election race hits final stretch

SYDNEY, May 20 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison criss-crossed the country in a final day of campaigning, insisting he could still win Saturday's election despite polls pointing to a change…

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UPDATED: Italy reports first case of monkeypox infection, Australia reports first case

Italy has diagnosed its first case of the monkeypox infection at the Spallanzani hospital in Rome, the hospital said, adding that the person, who arrived from a stay on the…

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Australian election on Saturday: What you need to know

Australians vote on Saturday in a national election, with the conservative Liberal-National coalition seeking a fourth straight term and the Labor Party seeking a return to power after nine years…

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Australian election polls show race tightening in final campaign stretch

SYDNEY, May 18 (Reuters) - Australia's national election has become too close to call, polls out on Wednesday showed, as the ruling conservative coalition narrowed the gap with the main opposition Labor…

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Australia PM, trailing in election polls, announces housing policy

May 15 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a housing policy on Sunday aimed at boosting home ownership and curbing high prices, as his government lags the opposition Labor Party…

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Analysis: Hero to hindrance: Australia PM Morrison hurts party’s election hopes

SYDNEY(Reuters) - Three years ago, Scott Morrison's ebullient personality as the little known and newly installed leader of Australia's Liberal Party was a big factor in its unexpected election victory.…

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Australia’s Morrison vows more empathy if re-elected PM

SYDNEY, May 14 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison promised on Saturday to be more empathetic if he wins re-election, as his government continues to trail the opposition Labor Party a…

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New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern tests positive for COVID

May 14 (Reuters) - New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern tested positive for COVID-19 with moderate symptoms, her office said in a statement on Saturday. She will not be in parliament for…

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Australian defence minister says Chinese spy ship in waters ‘an act of aggression’

SYDNEY, May 13 (Reuters) - Australia's defence minister, Peter Dutton, said a Chinese intelligence ship had been tracked off the West Australian coast, describing it as an "act of aggression" by Beijing.…

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New Zealand to open international borders fully to visitors from end-July

WELLINGTON, May 11 (Reuters) - New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Wednesday the country will fully reopen its international borders from 11:59 p.m. on July 31, with cruise ships also…

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Early voting begins in Australia election with opposition ahead in polls

Early voting began in Australia on Monday two weeks ahead of election day, with surveys showing the opposition centre-left Labor Party extending its lead and Prime Minister Scott Morrison suffering…

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Opposition leader offers Australia ‘a better future’ in campaign launch

SYDNEY, May 1 (Reuters) - Australian opposition leader Anthony Albanese on Sunday promised the country a "better future" in a campaign launch that was light on controversial reforms but drenched in unity…

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Australia targets Putin’s daughters, Russian senators in fresh sanctions

SYDNEY, April 22 (Reuters) - The Australian government has imposed sanctions and travel bans on two daughters of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's daughter, it said…

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New Zealand welcomes Australian visitors as border restrictions ease

WELLINGTON, April 13 (Reuters) - Australians started arriving in New Zealand on Wednesday after it opened its borders to travellers from its neighbouring nation for the first time since mid-2021. New Zealand…

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Australian election campaign kicks off with opposition ahead in polls

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison's government could lose the federal election to be held on May 21, according to polls on Monday, even as they showed him consolidating his position as the country's…

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Australian prime minister calls national election for May 21

MELBOURNE/SYDNEY, April 10 (Reuters) - Australia will hold a general election on May 21, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday, triggering a campaign expected to be fought over cost-of-living pressures, climate change,…

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Rising rivers force more Sydney flood evacuations as rain eases

SYDNEY, April 8 (Reuters) - Hundreds more Sydney residents were ordered to leave their homes on Friday, some for the second time in a month, as rivers burst their banks even as…

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Sydney asks thousands to evacuate as heavy rains cause flash floods

SYDNEY, April 7 (Reuters) - Torrential rain pummelled Australia's east coast on Thursday with Sydney receiving nearly a month's rain overnight, turning suburban roads into rivers and triggering evacuations as authorities warn…

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Australia to impose sanctions on 67 more Russians over Ukraine

BRUSSELS, April 7 (Reuters) - Australia will impose financial sanctions and travel bans on an additional 67 Russians over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said on Thursday,…

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Australia-India trade deal to open ‘biggest economic door’: Morrison

April 2 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said a trade agreement with India due to be signed on Saturday represented “one of the biggest economic doors there is to open…

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UPDATED: Ukrainian president addresses Dutch and Australian parliament

THE HAGUE, March 31 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy asked the Dutch parliament on Thursday for weapons, reconstruction aid and a halt to all business with Russia in response to the invasion of his country.…

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Australia flags move on high fuel prices as election nears

March 27 (Reuters) - Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg on Sunday indicated the federal government would likely act to lower petrol prices in the upcoming federal budget, weeks out from a general election.…

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Australia to roll out fourth COVID vaccine shot ahead of winter

SYDNEY, March 25 (Reuters) - Australia will roll out a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccines to its most vulnerable population starting next month, authorities said on Friday, as the country looks to limit fresh…

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Australia to make Big Tech hand over misinformation data

SYDNEY, March 21 (Reuters) - Australia's media regulator will be able to force internet companies to share data about how they have handled misinformation and disinformation under new laws that will bolster…

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Australia bans alumina exports to Russia, sources coal for Ukraine

March 20 (Reuters) - Australia has imposed an immediate ban on exports of alumina and aluminium ores, including bauxite, to Russia, the government said on Sunday as part of its ongoing sanctions…

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New Zealand PM Ardern announces border reopening earlier than previously signalled

WELLINGTON, March 16 (Reuters) - New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Wednesday said New Zealand will reopen its borders much earlier than expected, with Australians allowed to travel there from April…

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Australia, Netherlands start UN action against Russia over MH17

SYDNEY/AMSTERDAM, March 14 (Reuters) - Australia and the Netherlands said on Monday they had begun joint legal action against Russia at the United Nations' aviation agency over the downing of Malaysia Airlines…

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Australia joins allies in sanctioning Russian oligarchs

SYDNEY, March 14 (Reuters) - Australia said on Monday it was imposing new sanctions on 33 Russian oligarchs and business people, including Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich and Gazprom GAZP.MM CEO Alexey Miller,…

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Photo Story: Triceratops: Fate of the Dinosaurs at Melbourne Museum

Horridus, the world’s most complete Triceratops fossil is on display during a media preview of 'Triceratops: Fate of the Dinosaurs' at Melbourne Museum, in Melbourne, Australia. The exhibition contains the…

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Thousands of Australians return to ‘uninhabitable’ homes as floods recede

SYDNEY, March 10 (Reuters) - Thousands of Australians returned to their homes on Thursday after torrential rains eased and floodwaters receded as authorities ramped up clean-up efforts and unveiled new…

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Australia to declare east coast floods a national emergency

SYDNEY, March 9 (Reuters) - Floods that have devastated Australia's east coast will be declared a national emergency, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday, as authorities look to deploy aid and…

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‘Tough 24 hours ahead’ as rains drench Sydney, forcing snap evacuations

SYDNEY, March 8 (Reuters) - Flood warnings stretched across Australia's east coast on Tuesday and tens of thousands of Sydney residents fled their homes as torrential rains again pummelled the country's largest…

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Half a million Australians face flood evacuation orders

SYDNEY, March 3 (Reuters) - Authorities in Australia issued more orders for people to leave their homes on Thursday after heavy rain triggered flash floods in its largest city, with…

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Australia evacuates tens of thousands as heavy rains threaten Sydney

SYDNEY, March 2 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of Australians fled from their homes and authorities evacuated a hospital on Wednesday as more torrential rains battered the east coast. Thirteen…

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People flee to rooftops as ‘weather bomb’ submerges Australian towns

SYDNEY, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of people were ordered to evacuate as heavy rains smashed Australia's east coast on Monday, submerging towns and stranding residents on rooftops,…

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Photo Story: Heavy rain and flood risks in NSW

Floodwaters are seen in Murwillumbah in Northern NSW, Australia. Sydney's soggy summer has likely broken recent rain and humidity records, with forecast heavy rain and flood risk concerning authorities in…

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New Zealand’s Ardern signals mandates will ease after Omicron peaks

WELLINGTON, Feb 21 (Reuters) - New Zealand will lift COVID-19 vaccine mandates and social distancing measures after the Omicron peak has passed, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday, as protesters occupying…

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Italy’s ambassador to Australia dies in fall from balcony

The Italian ambassador to Australia has died after falling from a balcony in her home town in Foligno in the Umbria region. According to reports, Ambassador Francesca Tardioli, 56, was…

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‘Welcome back world!’: Australia fully reopens borders after two years

SYDNEY, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Australia on Monday fully reopened its international borders to travellers vaccinated against the coronavirus after nearly two years of pandemic-related closings as tourists returned and hundreds of…

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New Zealand capital Wellington shaken by magnitude 5.6 quake

WELLINGTON, Feb 21 (Reuters) - A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck New Zealand near the South Island town of Blenheim on Monday at a depth of 30 km (19 miles), government seismic monitor…

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‘Fortress Australia’ to welcome tourists for first time under COVID

MELBOURNE, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Australia will welcome international tourists on Monday after nearly two years of sealing its borders, relying on high COVID-19 vaccination rates to live with the…

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Australia accuses China of ‘act of intimidation’ after laser aimed at aircraft

MELBOURNE, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison accused Beijing of an 'act of intimidation' after a Chinese navy vessel directed a laser at an Australian military surveillance…

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Western Australia to open borders after two years

Western Australia, the mining-heavy state that has held firm on strict borders controls for two years, said it will be reopening to triple vaccinated visitors after deciding it can cope…

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Australian unemployment holds at 13-year low as Omicron hits hours

SYDNEY, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Australia's unemployment rate held at a 13-year low in January as a surge in coronavirus cases took more of a toll on hours worked than on jobs,…

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Sydney beaches close after first fatal shark attack in 60 years

SYDNEY, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Several Sydney beaches, including the iconic Bondi and Bronte, were shut down on Thursday after a swimmer was killed in a shark attack, the first…

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