Schools across Auckland will close from Monday as New Zealand’s largest city braces for the arrival of Cyclone Gabrielle, CNN affiliate Radio New Zealand reported Sunday.
Over 36 schools and universities will shut their doors despite no formal order from the Ministry of Education, RNZ said, while the InterCity bus network will also reduce its services.
Meanwhile, with Gabrielle closing in, Air New Zealand said it was canceling multiple long-haul international fights on Monday, as well as Tasman and Pacific Island flights, and domestic services in and out of Auckland, Reuters reported.
In a press conference with local media Sunday, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Chris Hipkins once again called on residents across Auckland to minimize non-essential travel, urging those who could work from home to do so.
“We do expect severe weather is on the way so please make sure you’re prepared, make sure you have your preparations in place, if you have to stay put for a period of time or if you have to evacuate,” Hipkins told reporters.
On Saturday, Gabrielle transitioned to a post-tropical cyclone meaning it has lost its tropical system characteristics, however the latest forecasts from New Zealand’s MetService warn the storm still poses a “very high risk of extreme, impactful and unprecedented weather over many regions of the North Island from Sunday to Tuesday.”
In Northland, a subtropical region on New Zealand’s North Island, a state of emergency was declared Sunday for an initial period of seven days as part of the regional response to Gabrielle, according to a notice from local authorities.
Northland has experienced just six state of emergency warnings in the last 50 years, the statement added.
Auckland Emergency Management warned the city was likely to be hit by strong winds on Sunday night, with gusts of up to 140 kph (90 mph) or higher from Monday, Reuters reported.
Australia’s central bank raised its cash rate by 25 basis points to a decade-high of 3.35% on Tuesday and reiterated that further increases would be needed, in a more hawkish policy tilt than many had expected.
Wrapping up its February policy meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) also dropped previous guidance that it was not on a pre-set path and forecast inflation would only return to the top of its target range of 2-3% by mid-2025.
“The Board expects that further increases in interest rates will be needed over the months ahead to ensure that inflation returns to target and that this period of high inflation is only temporary,” governor Philip Lowe said in a statement.
Markets were surprised by the hawkish tone of the RBA which shattered any expectations of an imminent pause to the tightening campaign. The futures market has priced in a peak rate of 3.9%, implying at least two more rate hikes in March and April, compared with 3.75% before the decision.
The local dollar shot up to $0.6940, extending earlier gains. Three-year government bond yields jumped 15 bps to 3.254% while ten-year yields also surged 15 bps to 3.615%.
“The surprise was not in the decision, but rather the shift in tone and forward guidance in the Governor’s Statement,” said Gareth Aird, head of Australian economics at CBA, as he updated his call for rates to peak at 3.85% after the decision, compared with 3.35% previously.
“This change implies that the RBA Board has essentially made up their mind and intend to raise the cash rate further over coming months, if the economic data prints in line with their updated forecasts.”
Markets had expected a quarter-point move, with some risk of a bigger rise given recent inflation data had surprised on the high side. This was the ninth hike since last May, lifting rates by a total of 325 basis points.
Lowe said that core inflation had been higher than expected, with the trimmed mean gauge accelerating to 6.9% last quarter from a year ago, above the central bank’s previous forecast of 6.5%.
Inflation is expected to decline to 4.75% this year and only slow to around 3% by mid-2025, according to the RBA’s latest forecasts.
The RBA also expects economic growth to average around 1.5% over 2023 and 2024.
The interest rate increases so far, including Tuesday’s move, will add over A$900 a month in repayments to the average A$500,000 mortgage, according to RateCity, a deadweight for a population that holds A$2 trillion ($1.3 trillion) in home loans.
Housing prices fell for the ninth straight month in January, with prices in Sydney and Melbourne down about 10% from a year ago.
There are signs that consumers are finally pulling back on spending as the cost of living surges and rate increases bite. Australian retail sales recorded the biggest drop in more than two years in December.
The next big test is the December quarter wage growth report later this month, which analysts expect to be robust given the labor market is at its strongest in nearly 50 years.
“High inflation makes life difficult for people and damages the functioning of the economy. And if high inflation were to become entrenched in people’s expectations, it would be very costly to reduce later,” warned Lowe as he signaled the bank’s intention to extend the tightening cycle.
Top gold producer Newmont
(NEM) Corp said it had made a $16.9 billion offer for Australian peer Newcrest
(NCMGF) Mining to build a global gold behemoth, although investors and analysts said it undervalued the target amid a leadership change.
Newcrest is seeking a new boss, with previous chief executive Sandeep Biswas having stepped down in December, while global interest rates are expected to peak this year and turn down, polishing the outlook for gold prices.
The Australian gold miner said that it was considering the all-share proposal in a filing that was a response to media speculation over the weekend. The initial feedback from shareholders is that they want a higher price, according to a person familiar with Newcrest’s deliberations.
“A good litmus test for a reasonably-priced deal is one where both seller and buyer feel somewhat aggrieved by selling out too low or by paying too much,” said Simon Mawhinney, chief investment officer at Allan Gray, Newcrest’s largest shareholder with a 7.36% stake. “It’s not clear to me that this kind of symmetry exists with these deal terms.”
Newcrest shares surged as much as 14.4% to A$25.60 ($17.77), the highest since May 2022, but remained below the implied current offer price of $27.16, suggesting investors were not convinced the deal would pan out. Shares closed 9.3% higher at A$24.53.
Newmont, which is already the world’s biggest gold producer by market capitalization and by ounces produced, said the combination represented “a powerful value proposition.”
Newcrest’s operations include its top class Cadia asset in Australia, an expanding footprint in North America and Papua New Guinea, and growth potential in copper, highly prized as key to the energy transition. BHP
(BBL) Group offered $6.4 billion for Australian copper miner Oz
(OZMLF) Minerals Minerals in December.
The Newmont proposal is via an agreed scheme of arrangement that would need to be recommended by the Newcrest board and subject to due diligence, various regulatory approvals and a shareholder vote that could stretch out for months.
The indicative offer implies a 21% premium to Newcrest’s last closing value of A$22.45, materially below the traditional 30% takeover premium, noted analyst Jon Mills of Morningstar, which values Newcrest at about A$31 per share.
Newcrest shareholders would receive 0.380 Newmont shares for every Newcrest share, giving them a 30% stake in the enlarged miner. It is a 4.7% improvement from a previous 0.363 per share offer that Newcrest already rejected for not providing enough value to shareholders, Newcrest disclosed on Monday.
If investors don’t back the deal, the board will be under pressure to improve Newcrest’s value, perhaps by breaking out assets like Havieron and Telfer in Australia, or Lihir in Papua New Guinea, said Barrenjoey analyst Dan Morgan.
Newcrest has been expected to announce a new chief executive this year after Biswas announced his retirement after eight years.
Sherry Duhe, formerly chief financial officer, who joined Newcrest in February last year, is interim chief executive while a global internal and external search for a replacement is underway.
Newcrest has been viewed as a target in recent years given its middling performance, but only a handful of buyers are big enough to take it out, said an investment banker who was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
The all-share nature of the offer meant the timing is more likely to be linked to Newcrest’s leadership vulnerability than a big call on the gold price, but it probably also reflects a constructive view on the precious metal, the banker added.
Risks are growing for gold to break higher, Morgan Stanley in a note on Jan. 16, noting that its macroeconomists were now forecasting lower rates and a weaker U.S. dollar, in tailwinds for the metal.
Morgan Stanley is looking towards a bull case of spot gold reaching $2,160 in the fourth quarter, up from $1,866 an ounce.
A teenage girl was killed in a suspected shark attack in the Western Australian city of Perth after she jumped from her jet ski, police said Saturday.
The 16-year-old was pulled from the Swan River with critical injuries. Emergency personnel provided medical assistance to her at the scene but she died, said Police Acting Inspector Paul Robinson.
He said the victim was with her friends on jet skis.
“The family weren’t there when this took place, however, her friends were and as you can imagine this is an extremely traumatic incident for anyone to witness so obviously we’re offering counselling services to anyone who did witness it or is affected by the incident,” he said.
He said the Department of Fisheries had advised him it was unusual for a shark to be so far down the river, which flows through Perth into the Indian Ocean.
“I’ve spoken to fisheries and water police and unfortunately we have no idea what type of shark it is,” Robinson said.
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The US and allies are trying to further limit Russia’s ability to make money and finance its war efforts with new price limits on products like gasoline and fuel oil, a senior Treasury official announced Friday – adding to sanctions on Russian energy sales in response to the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Our intent is not to crash the Russian economy,” the official told reporters Friday. “Our intent is to make it impossible for the Kremlin to continue to make the choice of propping up the economy and also paying for their war.”
The agreement between the US, the G7, the European Union and Australia places a price cap on “seaborne Russian-origin petroleum products,” the US Department of Treasury said. There are two price levels: one applies to “premium-to-crude” petroleum products like diesel, kerosene and gasoline, which will be capped at $100 USD per barrel, and “discount-to-crude” petroleum products like fuel oil, which will be capped at $45 USD per barrel.
“The thing that we’re focused on is cutting off the revenue,” the official said. “We’re also going after their military industrialized complex and supply chain so they can’t use the money they have to buy the weapons they need. Our approach to this is really to go after the things that are crucial to the Kremlin’s war effort and their ability to prop up their economy.”
In December, the same group implemented a price cap on crude oil – which the Treasury official said was already impeding Russia’s ability to finance the war. They added Russia had “openly acknowledged” the price cap was hurting the country’s economy. Data released by Russia showed that monthly tax revenues from energy sales declined 46% from the month prior.
Officials shrugged off reports that, despite numerous sanctions, Russia’s economy is still expected to rebound and may even outpace Germany and Great Britain. The senior Treasury official said economically, the country “doesn’t function any longer like a normal economy.”
“They’ve shut it down largely, meaning that if you have money of Russia, they’ll let you keep putting money in Russia, but you can’t take money out. They no longer allow foreign capital coming into Russia,” the official said. “They’re needing to spend more money to prop up their economy because they become a closed economy.”
The reality, the official said, is that Russia’s budget deficit is growing “because the war is costing them more money” because the “bravery of the Ukrainian people” and the “weapons” were a surprise to them.
Newswise — New research has revealed that the process of ‘peopling’ the entire continent of Sahul — the combined mega continent that joined Australia with New Guinea when sea levels were much lower than today — took 10,000 years.
New, sophisticated models combined recent improvements in demography and models of wayfinding based on geographic inference to show the scale of the challenges faced by the ancestors of Indigenous people making their mass migration across the supercontinent more than 60,000 years ago.
The ancestors of Aboriginal people likely first entered the continent 75,000–50,000 years ago from what is today the island of Timor, followed by later migrations through the western regions of New Guinea.
According to the new research, this pattern led to a rapid expansion both southward toward the Great Australian Bight, and northward from the Kimberley region to settle all parts of New Guinea and, later, the southwest and southeast of Australia.
The research was led by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH) and saw international experts in Australia and the United States collaborate to investigate the most likely pathways and the timeframe needed to reach population sizes able to withstand the rigours of their new environment.
By combining two existing models predicting the routes they took – ‘superhighways’ – and the demographic structure of these first populations, the researchers were able to estimate the time for continental saturation more precisely. The new research has just been published in the international journal Quaternary Science Reviews.
Based on detailed reconstructions of the topography of the ancient continent and models of past climate, the researchers developed a virtual continent and programmed populations to survive in and move successfully through their new territory.
Navigating by following landscape features like mountains and hills and knowing where to find water led to successful navigation strategies. The first people of Australia soon passed along cultural knowledge to subsequent generations facilitating the peopling of the whole continent.
Yet the challenges put forth by the topography of Sahul led to a slower pace of migration. Previous models did not take into account the topographic constraints that this sophisticated model does, allowing for a more realistic estimation of the peopling of the continent. This new work also explains the slower progress Indigenous ancestors made in reaching Tasmania, which was only made possible when seawaters across Bass Straight receded — a finding only possible by combining these model results.
The study’s lead author, Corey Bradshaw, Matthew Flinders Professor of Global Ecology at Flinders University and CABAH Models Theme Leader, says together these combined models allow for a better understanding of the archaeological and genetic data explaining the great migrations of Indigenous people in Sahul.
‘The ways that people interact with terrain, ecology, and potentially other people alter our model outcomes, providing more realistic results. Therefore, models that incorporate only demographic information without considering the resources and needs of travellers, as well as the opportunities and constraints to their travel, are likely to underestimate the timing of expansion into new regions. So, we now have a good prediction of the patterns and processes of how people first settled these lands tens of thousands of years ago.’
‘Our updated modelling shows that New Guinea was populated gradually over 5000 to 6000 years, with a focus initially on the Central Highlands and Arafura Sea area before reaching the Bismarck Archipelago in the east. The peopling of the far southeast and Tasmania is predicted to have occurred between 9000 and 10,000 years following initial arrival in Sahul.’
Professor Bradshaw says the innovative model developed by the researchers could be modified for other parts of the world to investigate the timing and patterns of initial peopling by humans.
‘Examining comparable patterns in regions of the Middle East as humans left north-eastern Africa, entry and spread into Europe, expansion across southern Asia, and movements from Alaska to South America, are all now possible using the same modelling approach.’
‘Because our model incorporates local conditions, including the spatial and temporal patterns of the land’s ability to provide food, the distribution of water sources, and topography, our migration patterns would be highly relevant when applied to other parts of the world.’
‘These results are surprising and very compelling,’ says Dr Stefani Crabtree, co-author of the study and Fellow at the Santa Fe Institute and Assistant Professor at Utah State University.
‘Our work shows that we need to keep in mind the constraints placed on travellers by the underlying geography as well as likely demographic scenarios. And as this work is based on our understanding of human movement globally, it can have massive implications for understanding migration in other places and other times. This also goes to show the power of combining computational models with archaeology and anthropology for refining our understanding of humanity.’
Australia has decided it’s had enough of the British monarchy – at least on its dollar bills. The country will replace the last of its banknotes featuring the late Queen Elizabeth II with something much closer to home.
Britain’s King Charles III, the late queen’s first son and successor, may have inherited the throne, but his face will not appear on Australia’s five-dollar bills.
Australian $5 notes are pictured in Sydney, Septembe 10, 2022. King Charles III won’t feature on Australia’s new $5 bill, the nation’s central bank has announced, signaling a phasing out of the British monarchy from Australian banknotes, although he is still expected to feature on coins.
Mark Baker/AP
“I think that’s absolutely brilliant,” said Sydney resident Leanne Nijemeisland. “This is Australia.”
Instead of the king, Australia’s government decided that new five-dollar bills will carry an image honoring the country’s indigenous culture.
“The five-dollar note will say more about our history and our heritage and our country, and I see that as a good thing,” said Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers.
The U.K. will start rolling out new banknotes bearing King Charles’ image next year, but especially in light of Australia’s move, it’s unclear how many other countries will stick with the tradition.
Not everyone in Australia is glad to see the monarch replaced.
One Sydney resident, who didn’t give her name, said “the queen is amazing and so we should keep her, in like, loving memory of her. Maybe the king can go on another note, but keep the queen.”
Charles’ face will make it onto Australia’s coins, but the monarchy’s 100-year monopoly on the country’s cash is finally spent.
Ian Lee is a CBS News correspondent based in London, where he reports for CBS News, CBS Newspath and CBS News Streaming Network. Lee, who joined CBS News in March 2019, is a multi-award-winning journalist, whose work covering major international stories has earned him some of journalism’s top honors, including an Emmy, Peabody and the Investigative Reporters and Editors’ Tom Renner award.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia is removing the British monarchy from its bank notes.
The nation’s central bank said Thursday its new $5 bill would feature an Indigenous design rather than an image of King Charles III. But the king is still expected to appear on coins that currently bear the image of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
The $5 bill was Australia’s only remaining bank note to still feature an image of the monarch. The bank said the decision followed consultation with the center-left Labor Party government, which supported the change. Opponents say the move is politically motivated.
King Charles III won’t feature on Australia’s new $5 bill, the nation’s central bank announced Thursday.
The British monarch remains Australia’s head of state, although these days that role is largely symbolic. Like many former British colonies, Australia is debating to what extent it should retain its constitutional ties to Britain.
Australia’s Reserve Bank said the new $5 bill would feature a design to replace the portrait of the queen, who died last year. The bank said the move would honor “the culture and history of the First Australians.”
“The other side of the $5 banknote will continue to feature the Australian parliament,” the bank said in a statement.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the change was an opportunity to strike a good balance. “The monarch will still be on the coins, but the $5 note will say more about our history and our heritage and our country, and I see that as a good thing,” he told reporters in Melbourne.
The new $5 bill will feature an Indigenous design rather than an image of King Charles III.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton likened the move to changing the date of the national day, Australia Day.
“I know the silent majority don’t agree with a lot of the woke nonsense that goes on but we’ve got to hear more from those people online,” he told 2GB Radio.
Dutton said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was central to the decision for the king not to appear on the note, urging him to “own up to it.”
After taking office last year, Albanese started laying the groundwork for an Australian republic by creating a new position of assistant minister for the republic, but holding a referendum to sever constitutional ties with Britain has not been a first-order priority for his government.
The bank plans to consult with Indigenous groups in designing the $5 note, a process it expects will take several years before the new note goes public.
The current $5 will be issued until the new design is introduced and will remain legal tender even after the new bill goes into circulation.
The face of King Charles III is expected to be seen on Australian coins later this year.
One Australian dollar is worth about 71 cents in U.S. currency.
British currency began transitioning to the new monarch with the release of the 50 pence coin in December. It has Charles on the front of the coin while the back commemorates his mother.
This week, there were 208 million $5 notes in circulation worth AU$1.04 billion ($734 million), according to the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Australia’s smallest denomination accounts for 10% of the more than 2 billion Australian bank notes circulating.
Albanese’s center-left Labor Party is seeking to make Australia a republic with an Australian citizen as head of state instead of the British monarch.
After Labor won elections in May last year, Albanese appointed Matt Thistlethwaite as assistant minister for the republic. Thistlethwaite said in June there would be no change in the queen’s lifetime.
Australians voted in a 1999 referendum proposed by a Labor government to maintain the British monarch as Australia’s head of state.
When the queen died, the government had already committed to holding a referendum this year to acknowledge Indigenous people in the constitution. The government has dismissed adding a republic question to that referendum as an unwanted distraction from its Indigenous priority.
At one time, Queen Elizabeth II appeared on at least 33 different currencies, more than any other monarch, an achievement noted by Guinness World Records.
Central bank says new design will honour ‘the culture and history of the First Australians’.
Australia’s new five-dollar ($3.50) note will feature a design honouring the country’s Indigenous people, replacing the portrait of the British monarch that was previously on the note.
The Reserve Bank of Australia, Australia’s central bank, said the design highlighting “the culture and history of the First Australians” would be developed in consultation with the Indigenous community and was likely to take a few years. The Australian Parliament will continue to appear on the other side of the banknote, it added.
“This new design will replace the portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II,” the bank said in a statement on its website on Thursday.
The decision to leave successor King Charles III off the note means the monarch will no longer appear on any of Australia’s paper currency.
The central bank said the update followed discussions with the government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, which supported the change.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the change was an opportunity to strike a good balance.
“The monarch will still be on the coins, but the five-dollar note will say more about our history and our heritage and our country, and I see that as a good thing,” he told reporters in Melbourne.
The British monarch is Australia’s head of state, a largely ceremonial role, but the death of Queen Elizabeth last September sparked renewed debate about whether the country should become a republic.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture has featured on a number of notes.
The current 50-dollar ($35) note features author, activist, inventor, musician and preacher, David Unaipon, a Ngarrindjeri man from South Australia.
Albanese’s government is planning a landmark referendum on an Aboriginal “voice” to parliament for the Indigenous community.
A “yes” vote would constitutionally enshrine an advisory group to government made up of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders.
The referendum is expected to take place this year.
A coke plant worker beside coke battery ovens at the ArcelorMittal steel plant in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, in March 2019.
Vincent Mundy | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Expect exports of iron ore out of India to remain low as the world’s fourth-largest producer reserves more of the commodity for its own use, said commodity intelligence service Kpler.
“Indian iron ore exports … have really come off in the last few months. And that is quite indicative that domestic consumption there is very strong,” said Reid I’Anson, Kpler’s senior commodity analyst, who added that this will continue throughout the year.
India’s exports of iron ore plunged by 90% year on year in October last year, and recorded an year-on-year decline as steep as 96% in September.
India produces 9.2% of the world’s iron ore. Australia is the largest producer, accounting for almost 35% of global supply, followed by Brazil and China.
“India is going to be a standout economy in terms of growth in 2023 … And I think exports out of India are going to remain pretty weak as well as they consume most of that domestic production.”
The dip in India’s exports of the commodity comes just as China’s Covid reopening sends commodity prices soaring, and I’Anson forecasts that an “upward movement of 20%” on iron ore prices is on the table.
The benchmark 62%-grade iron ore last traded at $123.37 per ton, up about 30% since December when China announced the rollback of its “zero-Covid” measures.
Iron ore is primarily used to make steel, an important material in construction and engineering projects — and both Asian nations are on track to consume more.
“You’ve got the return of the consumers in China, which is going to drive durables consumption, and you’re going to see an improvement in the property market there,” I’Anson said.
The plate mill of the Jindal Steel and Power Ltd. plant in Raigarh, Chhattisgargh, India, on Feb. 11, 2015.
Udit Kulshrestha | Bloomberg | Getty Images
According to Refinitiv, around 60% of global iron ore exports are destined for China.
“Downstream demand in China started to show some signs of optimism based on government support particularly for the construction sector, which is the largest steel using sector in the country,” Tamara Thorne, senior analyst at Refinitiv Metals Research, told CNBC.
A similar pace of demand is expected for its neighbor.
“We expect the steel consumption in India will grow much faster than what we have seen in the first nine months of the financial year (in 2022),” said Seshagiri Rao, joint managing director of JSW Steel.
The secretary general of the Federation of Indian Mineral Industries, B K Bhatia, said he believes the export of iron ores in 2023 will be much more than the exports during 2022. Iron ore exports from India were affected by a 50% tax on low-grade iron ore exports, which was reversed in late November.
But while India’s exports of iron ore have picked up from December because of that, the move may not be a sustainable one, according to Kpler’s I’Anson. He maintains that the exports are unlikely to return to the levels seen in 2020 and 2021.
“The extent to which loadings have picked up recently is likely not sustainable for very long,” he said.
India’s iron ore exports won’t be the biggest factor in price volatility, however.
A laborer working at a stainless steel utensil workshop in Chennai on April 30, 2022.
Arun Sankar | Afp | Getty Images
“The largest swing factor is the ability of Rio Tinto in Australia and Vale in Brazil to operate up to the limits of their supply chains,” said CLSA research analyst Robert Stein.
Both iron ore powerhouses expect production to be flat year-on-year on the low side, and a 5% increase in a bullish scenario.
“Working capital has stabilised but remains somewhat elevated with commodity price volatility, higher raw material prices and global supply chain pressures,” mining giant Rio Tinto recently stated in its fourth-quarter production results.
China is another big factor.
“Demand is still impacted by the Chinese property deleveraging program and whilst in any given week, positive sentiment may lead price higher, [but] to sustainably reach those levels we would need to see widespread property stimulus or support,” said Stein.
A radiation alert is in force for parts of Western Australia after a tiny capsule containing Caesium-137 was lost.
Mining giant Rio Tinto has apologised as the search continues for a tiny radioactive capsule that went missing while it was being taken to a storage facility in Perth, triggering a radiation alert in parts of Western Australia.
The silver-coloured capsule, just 6mm (0.24 inches) wide and 8mm (0.31 inches) long, was lost as it was being transported from Rio Tinto’s Gudai-Darri mine near Newman, in the remote Kimberley region, to a storage facility some 1,400km (870 miles) away in Perth.
It is unclear how long the tiny capsule, which contains Caesium-137, a radioactive isotope that emits radiation equal to 10 x-rays per hour, has been missing.
The capsule left the site on January 12, and the contractor hired by Rio Tinto told the company it was missing on January 25. The public was alerted two days later.
Rio Tinto said it was taking the disappearance very seriously.
“We recognise this is clearly very concerning and are sorry for the alarm it has caused in the Western Australian community,” Simon Trott, Rio Tinto’s iron ore division chief, said in a statement on Monday.
“Rio Tinto engaged a third-party contractor, with appropriate expertise and certification, to safely package the device in preparation for transport off-site ahead of receipt at their facility in Perth,” he said, adding that Rio was also conducting its own investigation into how the loss had happened.
Before the device left the site, a Geiger counter was used to confirm the presence of the capsule inside the package, Rio Tinto said. Authorities believe that the device fell out of the truck as it was being moved.
“We have completed radiological surveys of all areas on site where the device had been, and surveyed roads within the mine site as well as the access road leading away from the Gudai-Darri mine site,” Trott said.
Authorities have recommended people stay at least five metres (16ft) away, and a radiation alert across parts of the vast state remains in place.
Health officials have warned the capsule could cause radiation burns or sickness if handled.
“The concern is someone will pick it up not knowing what they are dealing with,” said Dr Andrew Robertson, chief health officer for Western Australia.
The capsule was packed in accordance with the radiation safety transport and regulations inside a box bolted onto a pallet, he added.
“We believe the vibration of the truck may have impacted the integrity of the gauge, that it fell apart and the source actually came out of it,” Robertson said. “It is unusual for a gauge to come apart like this one has.”
The state’s Department of Fire and Emergency Services has deployed teams with handheld radiation detection devices and metal detectors along 36km (22 miles) of the busy freight route to look for the container.
“What we’re not doing is trying to find a tiny little device by eyesight,” said Superintendent Darryl Ray, adding they were concentrating on populated areas north of Perth and strategic sites along the Great Northern Highway.
“We’re using the radiation detectors to locate the gamma rays,” he said.
Authorities are also using the truck’s GPS data to determine the exact route the driver took and where it stopped after it left the mine. It arrived at the Perth depot on January 16.
There are concerns it could have become lodged in the tyres of a vehicle travelling on the same road.
Djokovic defeated Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) to claim his 22nd Grand Slam title to equal Rafael Nadal’s all-time record.
Novak Djokovic has won his 10th Australian Open championship and record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title overall by beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final at Rod Laver Arena.
The Serbian star dropped just one set all tournament, despite saying he feared a left hamstring problem might force him to withdraw, and finished with a 6-3, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) victory over first-time Australian Open finalist Tsitsipas on Sunday.
As a result of winning the first Grand Slam of the year, Djokovic also reclaimed the world number-one ranking from Carlos Alcaraz.
The 35-year-old did not compete in the Australian Open a year ago after being deported from the country because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19.
Djokovic extended his winning streak at the tournament to 28 matches [Loren Elliott/Reuters]
Government restrictions have eased since, and he was able to get a visa this time despite still not having gotten vaccinated against COVID.
“I have to say this has been the most challenging tournament I have played in my life … not playing last year, coming back this year,” Djokovic said after the match. “Only the team and the family knows what we have been through in the last four or five weeks.”
Now Djokovic has extended his winning streak at the hard-court tournament to 28 matches.
His 10th trophy in Australia adds to the record he already held. His 22 major championships – which include seven from Wimbledon, three from the US Open and two from the French Open – are tied with Rafael Nadal for the most by a man in the history of tennis.
With sizeable Greek and Serbian communities in Melbourne, and Rod Laver in attendance, there was a raucous atmosphere.
Djokovic came into the match with his confidence high having won all nine of his previous Australian Open finals and with a 10-2 career advantage over the Greek.
He was superior throughout against Tsitsipas, but especially so in the two tiebreakers.
Djokovic took a 4-1 lead in the first and after it was 4-all, pulled off the last three points. He led 5-0 in the closing tiebreaker and, when it finished, he pointed to his temple then climbed into the stands, pumped his fist and jumped with his coach, Goran Ivanisevic, and other members of the entourage, before collapsing, crying.
Djokovic returned to the court, sat on his sideline bench, buried his face in a white towel and let some more tears flow.
Margaret Court, with 24, Serena Williams, with 23, and Steffi Graf, with 22, have the most championships among women.
This was also the 93rd ATP tour-level title for Djokovic, allowing him to break a tie with Nadal for the fourth most. Jimmy Connors holds that mark, at 109.
Djokovic was participating in his 33rd major final, Tsitsipas in his second – the 24-year-old’s other one also ended in a loss to Djokovic, at the 2021 French Open.
Melbourne, Australia — Novak Djokovic found this trip to Australia far less complicated, and far more successful, than that of a year ago.
Unable to enter his best event in 2022 after being deported from the country because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19, Djokovic accomplished all he could have wanted in his return: He resumed his winning ways at Melbourne Park and made it back to the top of tennis.
Only briefly challenged in the final on Sunday night, Djokovic was simply better at the most crucial moments and beat Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) for a record-extending 10th Australian Open championship and record-tying 22nd Grand Slam title overall. As a bonus, Djokovic will vault from No. 5 to No. 1 in the ATP rankings, a spot he already has held for more weeks than any other man.
“He’s the greatest that has ever held a tennis racket,” Tsitsipas said.
Djokovic stretched his unbeaten streak in Melbourne to 28 matches, the longest run at the tournament for a man in the Open era, which dates to 1968. He adds trophy No. 10 there to the seven from Wimbledon, three from the U.S. Open — where he also was absent last year because of no coronavirus shots — and two at the French Open, to match rival Rafael Nadal for the most by a man in tennis history.
Margaret Court, with 24, Serena Williams, with 23, and Steffi Graf, with 22, have the most among women.
This was also the 93rd ATP tour-level title for Djokovic, allowing the 35-year-old from Serbia to break a tie with Nadal for the fourth-most. Jimmy Connors holds that mark, at 109.
Djokovic was participating in his 33rd major final, Tsitsipas in his second — and the 24-year-old from Greece’s other one also ended in a loss to Djokovic, at the 2021 French Open.
Novak Djokovic celebrates winning the Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Jan. 29, 2023.
Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
He was superior throughout against Tsitsipas, but especially so in the two tiebreakers. He took a 4-1 lead in the first and after it was 4-all, pulled off three points in a row. He led 5-0 in the closing tiebreaker and, when it finished, he pointed to his temple then climbed into the stands, pumped his fist and jumped with his coach, Goran Ivanisevic, and other members of the entourage, and collapsed, crying.
Little doubt this is of no solace to Tsitsipas, but there is no shame in failing to defeat Djokovic in Melbourne. Challenging his dominion on those blue hard courts is every bit the monumental task that taking on Nadal on the red clay at Roland Garros is.
Perhaps surprisingly, Tsitsipas was willing to engage in the kind of leg-wearying, lung-searing back-and-forths upon which Djokovic has built his superlative career. How did that work out? Of points lasting at least five strokes, Djokovic won 43, Tsitsipas 30.
Then again, on those rare occasions that Tsitsipas did charge the net, he likely regretted the choice, because Djokovic often conjured up a passing shot that was too tough to handle.
One of Djokovic’s many other strengths is his return game, and he accumulated three break points within 17 minutes, converting the last for a quick 3-1 lead when Tsitsipas double-faulted.
The trophy for which they were playing was displayed on a pedestal near a corner of the court, and both men would get within reach of it whenever wandering over to towel off between points at that end.
So close, yes, but for Tsitsipas, never truly close enough.
Novak Djokovic speaks with Stefanos Tsitsipas during the trophy ceremony after the Australian Open in Melbourne on Jan. 29, 2023.
DAVID GRAY/AFP via Getty Images
It’s not as though Tsitsipas played all that poorly, other than a rash of early miscues that seemed to be more a product of tension than anything.
It’s that Djokovic was, put simply, too good. Too accurate with his strokes — making merely 22 unforced errors, 20 fewer than his foe — and anticipation. Too speedy and flexible chasing shots (other than on one second-set point, when, running to his left, Djokovic took a tumble). Too dangerous with his returns and damaging enough with his serves.
Djokovic pushes and pushes and pushes some more, until it’s the opponent who is something less than perfect on one shot, either missing or providing an opening to pounce.
There has been more than forehands and backhands on Djokovic’s mind over the past two weeks.
There was the not-so-small matter of last year’s legal saga — he has alternately acknowledged the whole thing served as a form of motivation but also said the other day, “I’m over it” — and curiosity about the sort of reception he would get.
He heard a ton of loud support, but also dealt with some persistent heckling while competing, including applause after the faults Sunday.
There was the sore left hamstring that has been heavily bandaged for every match — until the final, that is, when only a single piece of beige athletic tape was visible — and had worried him at the beginning of Week 1, prompting him to turn to what he said was “a lot” of pain-killing pills and other treatments he didn’t detail.
And then there was the more complicated matter of his father, Srdjan, being filmed with a group of people with Russian flags — one with an image of Vladimir Putin — after Djokovic’s quarterfinal victory. The tournament banned spectators from bringing in flags of Russia or Belarus, saying they would cause disruption because of the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Both Djokovic and his father said it was a misunderstanding, based on Srdjan thinking he was with a group of Serbian fans.
Because of that episode, Srdjan Djokovic did not attend his son’s semifinal victory over Tommy Paul on Friday, and was not seen in the Djokovic guest box on Sunday.
No matter any of it, Djokovic managed to excel as he so often does, winning 17 sets in a row after ceding one in the second round last week.
Officials have warned the public of the risks in touching a small capsule containing a radioactive substance that was lost during transportation in Western Australia.
The silver, round capsule, which measures about a quarter of an inch in diameter and is about a third of an inch tall, contains a small quantity of radioactive Caesium-137, a substance used within gauges in mining operations. Australia’s Department of Health has warned of the material’s serious health consequences.
The capsule left a mine site north of the town of Newman by road on January 12, according to a statement released by Western Australia’s Department of Fire & Emergency Services (DFES) on Saturday.
It was being sent to the northeastern suburbs of Perth for repairs. The package holding the capsule arrived in Perth on January 16 and was unloaded and kept in a secure radiation store.
However, when the package was opened for inspection on Wednesday, the gauge was found to be broken apart with screws missing – and the capsule was not there.
Western Australia police notified DFES and the Hazard Management Agency that evening. A search is underway to find the capsule and safely contain it, according to DFES Country North chief superintendent David Gill.
“A multi-agency Incident Management Team, comprised of DFES, Department of Health, WA Police and other subject matter experts, are confirming the exact route and stops made during the journey from north of Newman,” he said in a statement on Friday.
“The start and finish of the transportation journey – the mine site north of Newman and the transport depot in the north-eastern suburbs of Perth – were among the locations searched” on Thursday and Friday, he added. “We are also combing roads and other areas in the search zone.”
The emergency services warned of a radioactive substance risk in parts of the Pilbara, Midwest Gascoyne, Goldfields-Midlands and Perth Metropolitan regions.
Exposure to Caesium-137 could cause radiation burns or radiation sickness. However, risk to the general community is relatively low, officials said.
“If people see the capsule or something that looks similar, stay away from it and keep others away from it too,” said Dr. Andrew Robertson, chief health officer and Radiological Council chair, in a statement on Friday.
“Do not touch or pick it up. The public is asked to report it immediately by calling 13 DFES (13 33 37),” he added, advising anyone who touches or goes close to the material for a long period of time to seek medical care.
“If you are very close to the material or touching it, the radiation risk increases immensely and could cause serious damage to your health, including causing radiation burns to the skin,” Robertson said.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A senior Australian government minister said Wednesday that rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, could be refused a visa due to antisemitic comments if he attempts to visit Australia.
Education Minister Jason Clare was responding to media reports that the U.S. celebrity intends to visit the family of new Australian partner Bianca Censori in Melbourne next week.
Clare said he did not know if Ye had applied for a visa but that Australia has previously refused them to people with antisemitic views.
“I expect that if he does apply, he would have to go through the same process and answer the same questions” as others who’ve aired such views, Clare told Nine Network television.
Last month, Ye praised Hitler in an interview with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. Twitter later suspended Ye after he tweeted a picture of a swastika merged with the Star of David.
Kanye West, known as Ye, watches the first half of an NBA basketball game between the Washington Wizards and the Los Angeles Lakers in Los Angeles, on March 11.
AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File
Australia’s Migration Act sets security and character requirements for non-citizens to enter the country. Any decision on whether Ye gets an Australian visa would be made by Immigration Minister Andrew Giles, whose office said he could not comment on individual cases due to privacy reasons.
Peter Wertheim, co-chief executive officer of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, met government officials on Tuesday to argue for an entry ban.
“We had a sympathetic hearing,” Wertheim said on Sky News. “We’ve made the case that this particular individual does not meet the character test and that it would be in the national interest not to grant him a visa and we set out our reasons in some detail.”
Opposition leader Peter Dutton said if he were in government, he would be inclined to bar Ye on character grounds.
“My inclination would be not to allow him in,” Dutton told Melbourne’s Radio 3AW on Tuesday.
“His antisemitic comments are disgraceful, his conduct and his behavior is appalling, and he’s not a person of good character,” Dutton added.
Ye and Censori intend to visit her family who live in the northeast Melbourne suburb of Ivanhoe next week, Seven Network News reported.
Ye and Censori recently married less than two months after he finalized his divorce from Kim Kardashian, entertainment news website TMZ reported two weeks ago.
The AP asked Ye’s representative whether he had married Censori and planned to visit Melbourne, but did not get an immediate response.
Australia’s consumer price index reached the highest since 1990 for the quarter of December, 2022.
Fairfax Media | Fairfax Media | Getty Images
Inflation in Australia rose to a new 32-year high of 7.8% in the final quarter of the fiscal year of 2022, rising at its steepest pace since March 1990.
The annualized figure of a rise in consumer prices backed by higher prices in food, automotive fuel, and new residential construction, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Prices rose the most for costs related to domestic and international travel, which rose by 13.3% and 7.6%, respectively.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the quarter’s consumer price index to rise 7.5%, lower than the Reserve Bank of Australia’s forecast of 8%. Prices of goods rose 9.5%, a slightly less dramatic print than the 9.6% from the previous quarter — the cost of services rose 5.5%, the highest since 2008.
The “trimmed mean annual inflation,” a reading that excludes large increases and declines in prices, increased to 6.9%, the highest since the government has started publishing that information in 2003, the release said.
The Australian dollar rose 0.51% and last traded at 0.7082 against the U.S. dollar.
On Tuesday, the National Australia Bank’s monthly business survey showed worsened business conditions for December with a reading of 12 points, a decline from November’s print of 20 points. A level above zero indicates favorable conditions, while numbers below zero represent negative conditions.
“The main message from the December monthly survey is that the growth momentum has slowed significantly in late 2022, while price and purchase cost pressures have probably peaked,” NAB chief economist Alan Oster said.
Meanwhile, business confidence in December rose by 3 points to -1, an improved reading from -4 points seen in November.
American Jenson Brooksby topped No. 2 seed Casper Ruud on the men’s side of the Australian Open on Thursday, just a day after fellow American Mackenzie McDonald defeated top seed Rafael Nadal. On the women’s side, American Katie Volynets stunned No. 9 seed Veronika Kudermetova to advance to the third round of the Australian Open. Steph Baumgartel, a reporter for Network 10, joins CBS News from Melbourne.
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Three more people have been charged with the alleged murder of a 15-year-old boy who died after sustaining head injuries while walking home from school with a group of friends.
Cassius Turvey died in hospital 10 days after the alleged attack last October, which occurred in a suburban area of Perth in Western Australia.
The teenager’s death led to an outpouring of grief in the Indigenous community and vigils were held across Australia calling for “Justice for Cassius.”
The first murder charge was laid in October against Jack Steven James Brearley, 21, who is accused of assaulting Cassius with a metal pole.
Three other people charged with murder appeared in Perth Magistrates Court on Friday – Aleesha Louise Gilmore, 20, Mitchell Colin Forth, 24 and Brodie Lee Palmer, 27, according to the ABC, Australia’s public broadcaster.
None of the four defendants have entered a plea and will next appear in court on March 29.
In the days following Cassius’ death, theories emerged about the motive behind the alleged attack, and as anger swelled Western Australia Police Commissioner Col Blanch issued a statement urging the community to “refrain from unfounded speculation.”
Immediately after the alleged attack, Cassius was rushed to hospital with cuts to his ear and forehead and stayed five days before being discharged, according to a GoFundMe page set up by his family’s supporters.
Within hours of leaving hospital, Cassius suffered a seizure and two strokes, and died surrounded by family on October 23.
Thousands of people have donated to the GoFundMe page since it was set up in October, raising just over half a million US dollars – almost triple its target.
Cassius’ mother Mechelle Turvey was in court on Friday to hear the charges read and released a statement thanking the family’s supporters.
“On behalf of Cassius loved ones we again give gratitude to everyone for their support,” the statement said. “The news of 3 others being charged is another step towards justice and healing for many.”
