Archive for the ‘Australian News’ Category

New Surface tablets launching 23 September

Microsoft has set 23 September as the date and New York as the place for our first look at the new line-up of Surface tablets. (Credit: Microsoft) The current expectations are for Microsoft to announce a Haswell-based Surface Pro 2 and a Tegra-powered Surface 2. The Surface 2 will actually be the Surface RT […]

Backup and reset your iPhone to sell it online

Getting ready to upgrade your iPhone? Here’s how to prepare and sell your old model to make that upgrade a little easier on the wallet. iPhones hold their value very well. According to eBay Australia, it has been selling 15 iPhones an hour since April, and last year’s iPhone 5 still earns more money […]

Harrison Ford shocks Indonesian minister with heated climate interview

Updated September 10, 2013 19:30:36 Photo: US actor Harrison Ford is making part of an environmental documentary in Indonesia. (AFP: Hadi Wijaya) Indonesia’s forestry minister has accused Hollywood star Harrison Ford of subjecting him to a rude interview on climate change that left him “shocked”, an official said. The Indiana Jones and Star Wars actor, […]

High hopes choir hits the road

Updated September 10, 2013 19:56:54 Video: From struggle to stage (7pm TV News TAS) Photo: The choir is embarking on a state-wide tour. (ABC: Lauren Day) A group of disadvantaged musicians is preparing to take their struggles to the stage. Hobart’s Choir of High Hopes is spreading its sound with a state-wide tour of their […]

Judith Durham back to her best as Seekers hit the road again

Updated September 10, 2013 15:00:09 Photo: Seekers lead singer Judith Durham (left) and guitarist Athol Guy are hoping for a stress-free tour. (AAP: Julian Smith) The Seekers have announced they are ready to hit the road again as part of their Golden Jubilee Tour of Australia. The tour was suspended in May after lead singer […]

Push to ease adult-only content rules for TV slammed by South Australian Government

Updated September 10, 2013 21:29:40 Photo: TV content rules should not change, says SA Government The lobby group Free TV Australia wants people to be able to watch adult-rated programs at any time of day. The group, which represents the major free-to-air stations, wants to remove a ban on M-rated content being shown before 8.30pm. […]

Billy Bragg announced as headline act for Womadelaide in 2014

Updated September 10, 2013 12:58:03 Photo: Billy Bragg will help close Womadelaide Folk rock singer Billy Bragg will perform on the closing night of next year’s Womadelaide festival. It will be the first time the English artist has been at Adelaide’s festival of world music and dance in Bonython Park. Womadelaide director Ian Scobie said […]

Companies are scaling back graduate programs as the mining boom fades

Posted September 10, 2013 19:37:52 Photo: Gone are the days when engineering graduates were leaving university with job offers from multiple companies. Just five years ago, when Western Australia’s mining boom was beating strongly, engineering graduates could just about walk into any job they wanted. Talk of students being offered up to five jobs, even […]

Share market continues post-election growth with Australian dollar, business confidence rising

Updated September 10, 2013 18:19:53 Post-election optimism and some upbeat economic data out of China has helped the Australian share market and the dollar make ground. The All Ordinaries index closed 20 points higher, or 0.4 per cent, at 5,199. The ASX 200 index also rose 20 points to 5,201. Mining and finance stocks were […]

Business confidence surveys reveal optimism despite tough economic conditions

Updated September 10, 2013 18:10:42 Photo: Businesses reported sluggish conditions in August. (jungmoon: Flickr) There has been a surprise jump in business confidence, despite almost all the major indicators showing Australia’s economy is deteriorating. Two surveys released today reveal businesses think the change of government and the falling Australian dollar will deliver stability and growth […]

Viplus Dairy employees, contractors walk out over unpaid wages

Updated September 10, 2013 14:42:55 Employees and contractors at a South Gippsland milk factory say they are owed tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid wages and entitlements by the factory’s owners. Twelve employees of Viplus Dairy in Toora walked off the job last week, claiming they are owed about $20,000. The secretary of the […]

Call for bigger Indigenous share of mining profits

Updated September 10, 2013 16:06:19 Photo: CLC chairman Maurie Ryan says he doesn’t care if increased royalties scare away mining investors because Aboriginal people could start their own mining companies. (BHP Billiton) One of the Northern Territory’s largest land councils says mining companies are paying far too little in royalties to traditional owners. Central Land […]

Elders to cut workforce by 10 per cent

Struggling rural services company Elders will slash its workforce by 10% as part of $25m of cuts. Source: AAP STRUGGLING rural services company Elders is set to axe about 150 jobs, or about 10 per cent of its workforce, as it re-organises and refinances its business and reduces its debt. Elders chief executive Malcolm Jackman […]

FIFO pricing could come under pressure

AUSTRALIA’S biggest airlines face pricing pressure as they battle for fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) contracts in the wake of a recent downturn in the mining sector. Analysts say dominant FIFO players Qantas and Virgin Australia are likely to feel pricing pressure as mining companies cut expenditure and focus on the production phase. The FIFO aviation industry, […]

ASIC says hedge funds not a problem

HIGH risk hedge funds do not pose a systemic risk to the Australian financial system, the corporate regulator says. A survey of Australia’s largest hedge funds by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) found they were responsible for only a small share – 3.1 per cent – of Australia’s $2.1 trillion managed funds industry. […]

PNG PM encouraged by Abbott commitment

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O’Neill says he’s encouraged by incoming Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s commitment to the regional resettlement arrangement between the countries. The deal to send all asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat to PNG was signed with prime minister Kevin Rudd, who was defeated by Mr Abbott in […]

Syrian opposition slams Russia plan

   “The proposal of (Russian Foreign Minister Sergei) Lavrov is a political manoeuvre and is part of useless procrastination that will only result in more deaths and destruction for the Syrian people,” said an opposition statement published late Monday. Meanwhile, China has welcomed the plan. “We welcome and support the Russian side’s suggestion,” foreign ministry […]

China backs Russian plan for Syria

   “The proposal of (Russian Foreign Minister Sergei) Lavrov is a political manoeuvre and is part of useless procrastination that will only result in more deaths and destruction for the Syrian people,” said an opposition statement published late Monday. Meanwhile, China has welcomed the plan. “We welcome and support the Russian side’s suggestion,” foreign ministry […]

Indian rape accused found guilty

 Judge Yogesh Khanna said the men, who could now face the death penalty, were guilty of murdering a “helpless victim” last December as he announced that arguments for sentencing of the four would be held on Wednesday.   “I convict all of the accused,” Khanna said. “They have been found guilty of gang rape, unnatural offences, […]

Indian rape accused face verdicts

 Judge Yogesh Khanna said the men, who could now face the death penalty, were guilty of murdering a “helpless victim” last December as he announced that arguments for sentencing of the four would be held on Wednesday.   “I convict all of the accused,” Khanna said. “They have been found guilty of gang rape, unnatural offences, […]

Bill Gates plans to teach Australian man’s history course in schools worldwide

Updated September 10, 2013 23:46:32 Video: Bill Gates has partnered with an Australian academic on a unique history course destined for classrooms around the world. (Lateline) Photo: Bill Gates has formed a partnership with Professor Christian to promote the course, Big History. (AFP: Mark Graham) Billionaire Bill Gates is seeking to revolutionise the way history […]

India learning lessons from Australian election

Updated September 11, 2013 00:05:21 Video: India learning lessons from Australian election (ABC News) India, the world largest democracy, is due to hold its election next year, but this time around it will have an Australian connection. The Electoral Commissioner of India, Akshay Rout, has been observing the recent federal election as part of an […]

Four survivors of Anders Breivik massacre elected to Norway’s parliament

Posted September 10, 2013 23:42:54 Photo: Anders Behring Breivik killed 69 people at the Labour Party summer camp. (Reuters: Stoyan Nenov) Four young Norwegian Labour Party members who survived rightwing extremist Anders Behring Breivik’s bloody rampage two years ago have been elected to parliament. They were among 33 Labour Party candidates in Monday’s parliamentary election […]

Syria agrees to hand over its chemical weapons as Human Rights Watch contradicts Assad

Updated September 10, 2013 23:46:32 Photo: The use of conventional weapons has continued in areas outside the capital for more than two years. (Reuters: Houssam Abo Dabak) Syria has confirmed it will accept a Russian proposal to give up chemical weapons and win a reprieve from United States strikes, while warplanes bombed rebel positions in […]

Kenya’s deputy president William Ruto pleads not guilty to crime against humanity

Posted September 10, 2013 20:59:59 Photo: William Ruto appeared relaxed at the start of his trial at the International Criminal Court. (AFP: Michael Kooren) Kenya’s deputy president has entered a plea of not guilty at his trial in the International Criminal Court in The Hague. William Ruto has denied accusations he helped orchestrate post-election violence […]

Labor figures Steve Gibbons, Laurie Ferguson call for Kevin Rudd to quit parliament over leaks

Updated September 10, 2013 21:07:05 Photo: Labor MP Laurie Ferguson says Kevin Rudd should quit politics. (AAP: Dean Lewins) A growing number of Labor figures are calling for the former prime minister Kevin Rudd to quit Parliament. Former minister Brendan O’Connor today called on Mr Rudd to go and other Labor party figures are following […]

Cops called over phone use during film

A man has called the cops during a movie because of people texting and talking during the film. Source: Supplied A MOVIE blogger irate about mobile phone usage during a Toronto International Film Festival screening called 911 to report the offence. At a midnight screening on Monday, FirstShowing.net blogger Alex Billington became increasingly annoyed by […]

Is Colin becoming a little too lean?

Colin Firth poses at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. Picture: AP Source: AP Colin Firth poses with Reese Witherspoon to promote their new film Devil’s Knot at the Toronto Film Festival. Picture: Getty Images Source: Picture Media FANS expected Colin Firth to bounce back to Darcy-esque proportions after he shed the kilos to play […]

Why Hugh’s embarrassed by this pic

Hugh Jackman lifted an estimated 210kg in this photo. Picture: Twitter Source: Supplied HUGH Jackman says he was embarrassed by the insane Twit-pic he posted of his X-Men workouts. The Wolverine actor took to his Instagram and Twitter accounts to show off his bulging biceps and vein-popping form as he trained for new movie X-Men: […]

Violent dog shot by police in Canberra

A DOG has been shot and injured by a police officer after it violently attacked three people in a Canberra suburb. Police were called to Dunlop on the city’s outskirts on Tuesday to reports a tan-coloured dog had set upon a group of people. One woman was “bailed up” by the attacking dog, police said, […]

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