Albanese lost in translation as he heads to Beijing
But the willingness of this US president to trample on the diplomatic sensitivities of close allies doesn't give an Australian prime minister the same leeway. Not when the power, economic and security balance is so unequal.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
17 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Rubio to make first visit to Indo-Pacific region
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Malaysia later this week to attend a meeting of Southeast Asian Nations in his first visit to the Indo-Pacific region as America's top diplomat. Rubio will travel July 8-12 and will take part in meetings in Kuala Lumpur with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, whose foreign ministers are gathering there, the State Department said. Rubio will seek to firm up US relationships with partners and allies in the region, who have been unnerved by President Donald Trump's global tariff offensive. The trip is part of a renewed US focus on the Indo-Pacific and represents an effort by the Trump administration to look beyond the conflicts in the Middle East and Europe that have so far consumed much of its attention. Last week, Rubio hosted Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and counterparts from India and Japan. They announced a joint initiative to ensure the supply of critical minerals, a vital sector for high-tech applications dominated by Washington's main strategic rival, China. Trump also announced that he reached a trade agreement with an important Southeast Asian partner and ASEAN member Vietnam and could reach one with India, but cast doubt on a possible deal with Japan, Washington's main Indo-Pacific ally and a major importer and investor in the United States. Rubio has yet to visit Japan or neighbouring South Korea, the other major US ally in north-east Asia, since taking office in January, even though Washington sees the Indo-Pacific as its main strategic priority given the perceived threat posed by China. ASEAN countries have been nervous about Trump's tariff offensive and have questioned the willingness of his "America First" administration to fully engage diplomatically and economically with the region. "There is a hunger to be reassured that the US actually views the Indo-Pacific as the primary theatre of US interests, key to US national security," said Greg Poling, director of the Southeast Asia Program at Washington's Centre for Strategic and International Studies. Other ASEAN countries may be encouraged by Vietnam's deal with Trump. "This should smooth the way for continued pragmatic security engagement between the US and Vietnam, and hopefully provide a pathway for others in Southeast Asia to get similar deals without having to give up much," Poling said.
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Aldi makes move Aussies demanded
German supermarket giant Aldi has announced a major shake up to the way customers shop, in a move Aussies have been asking for since the Covid-19 pandemic. In an Australian first for the supermarket chain, Aldi has partnered with DoorDash and will now offer grocery delivery services. Starting from July 9, Aldi shoppers will be able to get access to Aldi's full range of products that will be delivered directly to their door. Aldi Australia's group buying director Simon Padovani-Ginies told NewsWire the partnership will help save customers money at the checkout. Aldi has announced an Australian first for the brand after years of customer demand. NewsWire / Diego Fedele Credit: News Corp Australia 'Our customers have been asking for us to go online for quite some time now as there are times when you simply can't get to a grocery store,' Mr Padovani-Ginies he told NewsWire. 'Without having Aldi participate in that convenience channel, (customers) are paying higher prices. 'They wanted Aldi to go online so they can help make more affordable grocery options in that convenience space and that is what we are really excited about.' Mr Padovani-Ginies says Tuesday's announcement is not due to competition in the supermarket space but simply as a way to meet customer demand. 'It is certainly a growing market but our customers have been telling us for a number of years, particularly after Covid that they would love to be able to access our product more conveniently online. 'We have been monitoring customer sentiment and have also been looking at the ongoing growth and success of the online channel. 'We now have a partnership that allows us to deliver it to our customers in a way that benefits the efficiency of the business and provides our customers exactly what they are looking for. ' Aldi new partnership with DoorDash will begin on Tuesday. Supplied Credit: Supplied Residents of Canberra will be the first in Australia to be able to use the new Aldi partnership with DoorDash. Supplied Credit: Supplied Acting like other services on delivery app, Aldi customers are being told they will need to download DoorDash before searching for 'Aldi' on the platforms. Customers then add times to their cart and order on demand or choose a delivery window that they would prefer. The partnership is currently in a trial phase limited to Canberra but is expected to roll out across the country, bringing this new way to shop Aldi to more Australians nationwide. Eventually Aldi plans for 85 per cent of Australian households to have access to the service. It was also confirmed to NewsWire prices might vary for shoppers using the app compared to shopping in store. 'But there will be some price variances that customers will experience when they shop the app versus what they are used to paying in store,' Aldi said. 'DoorDash also applies delivery and service fees. 'Those delivery and service fees are standardised across all grocers in the vertical so no matter which grocery supermarket you are buying through on DoorDash those delivery and service fees are aligned.' Despite the price variance, Aldi said it was committed to having the cheapest products available. 'The people of Canberra will have access to our full grocery assortment, so there are over 1800 products spanning fresh Aussie fruit and vegetables, fresh meat and seafood, all of the chiller, the freezer and our ambient range, so it's a large range letting Aussies feed their family for less,' Aldi said. 'It is our intention to make sure that we are the most affordable alternative whether that is bricks and mortar or buying online.'
The Age
2 hours ago
- The Age
RBA mulls more rate cuts as world prepares for Liberation Day 2.0
The Reserve Bank is poised to deliver its fastest cut in interest rates since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic as it seeks to protect the economy from the fallout of US President Donald Trump's latest tariff war and encourage households to open their wallets. But the impact of the Trump plan may turn out to be a small positive if United States-based manufacturers leave America in favour of other nations with lower tariffs such as Australia, according to the independent Productivity Commission. The Reserve Bank's monetary policy board started its two-day meeting on Monday. Financial markets and most economists expect it to back a further quarter percentage point cut in the official cash rate. Following its May rate cut, interest rates would be at a two-year low of 3.6 per cent. It would be the first time the bank has delivered back-to-back rate cuts since March 2020 when the RBA sought to protect the country from the fallout of the pandemic. On a $600,000 mortgage, a rate cut on Tuesday would be worth $100 a month and take to $300 the monthly savings since the Reserve Bank started easing monetary policy in February. Loading Lower inflation, which fell to 2.1 per cent in May, and sluggish economic growth combined with the potential fallout from the Trump tariff agenda have all driven up expectations of a rate cut on Tuesday with a high chance of another rate reduction in August. An ongoing concern has been the continuing strength of the jobs market. Unemployment has remained about 4.1 per cent for the past year with the country adding almost 330,000 jobs. The latest ANZ-Indeed measure of job ads, released on Monday, lifted by 1.8 per cent in June to be at its highest level in a year.
