Latest Australia Headlines
All the headlines from our Australia Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Flooded Australian Regions Declared Disaster Zones
Jan 5 2010 // Authorities declared two flooded farming regions in southwestern Australia natural disaster zones Monday as residents in one town nervously watched a rising river in hopes that it wouldn’t break its levees. Parts of...
Wildfires Destroy Homes in Western Australia
Dec 31 2009 // Wildfires roared across a swath of Western Australia on Wednesday, razing almost 40 homes and sending hundreds of people fleeing for their lives, officials and witnesses said. At least three people were injured. Two major...
AIR Analyzes Impact of Tropical Storm Laurence on Western Australia
Dec 17 2009 // According to a report from catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide, “severe Tropical Cyclone Laurence made a second landfall this evening [Dec. 16] along the Kimberley coast of north Western Australia State....
NAB Trumps AMP in $12 Billion Offer for AXA Asia-Pacific
Dec 17 2009 // National Australia Bank made a surprise trump bid for AXA Asia Pacific Holdings’ Australian and New Zealand units on Thursday, in a cash deal that would value all the target firm at around $12 billion. The bid tops...
France’s AXA Eyes Asia Growth with Takeover Bid
Nov 9 2009 // AXA Asia Pacific rejected a $10.3 billion bid from parent AXA SA and Australian rival AMP Ltd on Monday, an initial hurdle for the French insurer’s bold ambitions to expand in Asia. AXA SA, Europe’s...
Climate Talks Now ‘in the Balance,’ But Some Hints of Progress
Oct 20 2009 // Prospects for a new U.N. climate pact in December remained in the balance after talks among big emitters on Monday but with signs of action by Brazil, India and Australia. “It’s more do-able today than...
Best Affirms Ratings on QBE and Operating Companies
Oct 1 2009 // A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating of ‘A’ (Excellent) and the issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “a+” of UK-based QBE Insurance (Europe) Limited , Australia’s QBE Insurance...
Over 500 Reported Dead in Sumatra Quake; AIR Analyzes Disaster
Oct 1 2009 // Not long after the Samoan earthquake and tsunami struck in the South Pacific, a major earthquake occurred 9500 kms (5900 miles) away off Sumatra in western Indonesia. Latest news bulletins have raised the initial death...
Report: Australian Court Allows Claims against Lehman Brothers
Sep 28 2009 // An Australian court has ruled that local governments can pursue financial claims against collapsed U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers in Australia and elsewhere, a firm that is funding the litigation said on Monday. IMF...
Dust Storm Blankets Sydney as Drought Bites
Sep 23 2009 // A huge outback dust storm swept eastern Australia and blanketed Sydney on Wednesday, disrupting transport, forcing people indoors and stripping thousands of tons of valuable farmland topsoil. The dust blacked out the...
Reinsurers’ Rendezvous Reveals Reflection; Sea Level Rise Imperil Coasts; Pirates Ahoy!
Sep 21 2009 // The world’s reinsurers gathered in Monte Carlo over the first weekend in September for their annual conclave. This year’s meetings were calm by comparison with prior years — no hurricanes ravaging...
Coastal Home Owners Face Huge Losses from Rising Seas
Sep 3 2009 // Australians Lesley and Doug McGrath have for decades battled ocean swells that have eaten away at the backyard of their multi-million dollar Sydney home. They bought an old beach shack on Collaroy Beach in 1976 and...
Doha Round Talks Now an ‘End-Game’ Says Australian Trade Minister
Sep 3 2009 // The World Trade Organization’s Doha round to free up trade is nearly complete and world leaders are voicing the political will to reach a deal next year, Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean said on Wednesday. But...
Source Says Macquarie in Talks to Acquire Fox-Pitt Kelton
Aug 21 2009 // Australia’s Macquarie Group Ltd. is in talks to acquire Fox-Pitt Kelton Cochran Caronia Waller, a small investment bank owned by its management and private equity firm J.C. Flowers & Co LLC, a person familiar...
Report Finds Australia’s Wildfire Warning System ‘Dangerously Flawed’
Aug 20 2009 // A major inquiry into Australia’s wildfire disaster earlier this year has found that warning systems are dangerously flawed, and residents in vulnerable areas need better, faster information to escape quick-moving...
Asia-Pacific Nations Decry First-world Protectionist Policies
Jul 21 2009 // Some Asia-Pacific nations criticized U.S. and other developed world protectionism on Tuesday at a meeting aimed at spurring a global trade pact and revitalizing the global economy. Thai Commerce Minister Pornthiva Nakasai,...
El Nino Weather Pattern Increasing Says Australian Weather Bureau
Jul 8 2009 // The development of an El Nino weather pattern is increasing and at this stage may be a medium-strength event, but it could take months for it to be officially declared, Australia’s weather bureau said. “We are...
IAG Receives Around 4,000 Storm Claims
Jun 2 2009 // Insurance Australia Group Limited (IAG) has confirmed that it currently expects to pay between A$25 million and A$35 million (US$20.2 to $28.3 million) to customers affected by the recent storms in south-east Queensland...
Australian Navy Warships Thwart Pirate Attack off Yemen
May 19 2009 // The Australian navy thwarted an attack by pirates on two merchant ships in the dangerous waters off Yemen, Australian defense officials said Monday. Crew members aboard the MV Dubai Princess raised distress signals Sunday...
Australian Broker Association Opposes High Insurance Premium Taxes
May 14 2009 // The National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA) has issued a “Discussion Paper,” outlining the reasons for its opposition to the high taxes imposed on insurance transactions in Australia. The NIBA is the...
