Leaders from Australia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations pose for an official photo during a summit in Melbourne on March 5.
International relations

Amid cyberscam threats, ASEAN-Australia pledge to tackle human trafficking

Expert says Australia must do more to fight transnational crime in Southeast Asia

6 March 2024
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at a news conference with his Singaporean counterpart, Lee Hsien Loong, in Melbourne on March 5. 
Trade

Australia unveils $1.3bn fund for investment with ASEAN

Albanese pledges to support companies taking larger role in fast-developing region

5 March 2024
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, left, stands beside Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Governor of Victoria Margaret Gardner during a ceremony March 4 in Melbourne. 
5 March 2024
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong discusses maritime security at the ASEAN-Australia Summit in Melbourne on March 4 (Photo by Rurika Imahashi)
International relations

Australia wants 'region where no one country dominates': FM Wong

Tensions with China over contested waters top agenda at ASEAN-Australia summit

4 March 2024
A view of BHP's Nickel West operations, south of Perth. The resources giant is considering suspending operations at Australia's only nickel smelter.
Commodities

Australia nickel industry seeks aid as BHP smelter decision looms

Supply glut and lower-cost foreign producers squeeze domestic operators

4 March 2024
The opening ceremony of National People's Congress in Mach 2023 at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Photo by Yusuke Hinata)
Your Week in Asia

China 'Two Sessions', ASEAN-Australia Summit, Malaysia rate decision

Your weekly lineup of Asia's biggest business and political events

3 March 2024
Pro-Palestine protesters march to the Sydney Opera House on Oct. 9: Police advised the Jewish community to stay away from the rally.
Opinion

Australia's clampdown on hate crimes should protect Jews too

Upsurge in antisemitic incidents and threats yet to result in police action

3 March 2024
From left, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak deliver remarks on the AUKUS defense partnership at Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego in 2023.
Defense

AUKUS weighs Japan's participation in defense tech development

Ahead of PM Kishida's visit in April, U.S. leads talks with U.K. and Australia

2 March 2024
Di Sanh "Sunny" Duong arrives for sentencing at the County Court of Victoria in Melbourne on Feb. 29.
Politics

Australian court jails man for foreign interference in favor of China

Di Sanh Duong aimed to influence policy; is first person sentenced under new law

29 February 2024
While Australia has become home for tens of thousands of former Hong Kong residents in the wake of the city's draconian new security law, campaigners say Canberra should be doing more to recruit Hong Kong talent and accelerate asylum approvals.
Asia Insight

In China's shadow, Hong Kong escapees urge Australia to raise visa game

Amid Canberra-Beijing thaw, asylum seekers left in limbo as program for workers, graduates grows

27 February 2024
The truck in the distance is carrying rare earths toward a processing plant northeast of Perth, Western Australia. Lynas' chief executive says 2024 will be a transitional year.
Commodities

Australia's Lynas 'positive' on rare earths despite 74% profit drop

Only producer with supply chains outside China says demand will recover

26 February 2024
A man drives over a causeway on Nov. 25, 2019 in Funafuti, Tuvalu. The tiny island nation on Monday named Feleti Teo as its new prime minister. 
Indo-Pacific

Taiwan ally Tuvalu names former attorney general as prime minister

Feleti Teo's election shows ties with Taipei remain strong, envoy says

26 February 2024
Mountain slopes stripped off their flora in New Caledonia. The French territory in the South Pacific is well known for its massive nickel deposits. (Photo by Akira Kitado)
International relations

In EV revolution, resource-rich Global South hopes to turn cash-rich

Bolivia and Indonesia tell Global North to give them a place on the value chain

25 February 2024
One of the many striking images selected for display at PHOTO 2024: Tony Albert, David C Collins and Kieran Lawson, "Warakurna Superheroes No. 1," 2017, archival pigment print on paper, 100 by 150 cm. (Courtesy of Sullivan+Strumpf)
Arts

Australia's largest photography festival comes into focus

With far-sighted agenda, Melbourne-based event aims for regional and international impact

24 February 2024
A self-driving dump truck collects iron ore at Rio Tinto's Gudai-darri mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
Commodities

Australia's major miners buoyed by China demand despite property crisis

Battle of efficiency emerges as steel demand peaks in Asia's biggest economy

23 February 2024
Macquarie has "a bottom-up tailored strategy" for each of the Asian markets it operates in, according to Asia CEO Verena Lim. (Macquarie Group)
Finance

Macquarie 'very excited' about Japan carve-out opportunities, Asia CEO says

Australian financial group looks to ride Japanese M&A boom: Verena Lim

23 February 2024
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, 2nd from right, with the presidents of Palau, Micronesia and the Marshall Islands in Washington in 2022. (Pool via Reuters) 
Opinion

Gridlock has put U.S. strategic advantages in the Pacific at risk

Failure to fund pacts with 3 island nations would leave void for China to fill

23 February 2024
Artist Simon Normand uses souvenir teaspoons as an entry point for examining difficult social issues. (All photos courtesy of Simon Normand)
Tea Leaves

How a humble teaspoon can stir memories

Melbourne exhibition of mid-20th-century souvenirs raises uncomfortable questions

21 February 2024
The Australian warship HMAS Stalwart conducts a dual replenishment at sea. (Australian Department of Defence)
Defense

Australia boosts navy funding to build largest fleet since WWII

Government adds $7.2bn to double warships, citing 'uncertain world'

20 February 2024
This handout picture released by the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary on Feb. 19 shows officials patrolling near the town of Wabag, 600 kilometres northwest of the capital Port Moresby. 
Politics

Dozens killed in violence-plagued Papua New Guinea ambush

Illegal high-powered weapons worsening tribal conflict, says analyst

19 February 2024
A train loaded with iron ore departs a BHP mine in the Pilbara area of Western Australia. (BHP via AAP)
Commodities

Australian miner BHP averts rail strike with 20% pay raise

Tentative deal keeps iron ore moving in Western Australia

17 February 2024
Demand for nickel and other battery metals has fallen victim to a slower-than-expected adoption of electric vehicles.
Commodities

Australia adds nickel to critical minerals list amid price slump

The decision opens the door to more government support for the struggling sector

16 February 2024
Refugees on Nauru in 2018: The Australian government sent a fresh group of asylum seekers to the island months after hailing evacuation of the last refugee held last June. (Pool via AP)
Opinion

Australia is still a cruel place for those seeking asylum

PM Albanese has more to do to reform immigration system

16 February 2024
Workers in Western Australia have to contend with 40 C heat during the summer. (BHP group/AAP)
Commodities

Australia's BHP faces strike by iron ore freight train drivers

Company's exports from key Pilbara mining region could be affected

15 February 2024
Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, left, and Cook Islands Foreign Minister Tingika Elikana speak at a joint press conference in Fiji. The release of treated water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant was one of the issues in Kamikawa's talks with Pacific island leaders. (NIKKEI montage/Source photos by Reuters and Kyodo)
International relations

Japan seeks to allay Pacific island fears over Fukushima discharge

Foreign minister criticized for not fielding local press queries on treated water

13 February 2024