Australian news and politics live: Business leaders cautious as PM prepares for China, new tariffs released
US President Donald Trump has sent letters to the leaders of seven additional countries, warning of new tariff rates as high as 30 per cent on goods shipped to the United States.
The latest recipients include the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Moldova, Brunei, Algeria, Libya, and Iraq, with new tariffs set to take effect August 1 unless trade deals are reached.
Australia continues to face a 10 per cent baseline tariff on most exports to the US, which Prime Minister Anthony Albanese recently said is likely to remain in place.
The White House letter to Brazil's President Lula da Silva sharply criticised the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro, calling it a 'witch hunt' and an 'international disgrace.'
Read the full story here.
Australian business groups are 'cautiously optimistic' a visit to China by Anthony Albanese will help normalise a fragile relationship with Beijing.
The Prime Minister will travel to China on Saturday for a six-day visit of Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu, where he will be accompanied by a delegation of Australian business leaders.
Australia China Business Council president David Olsson said the relationship between the two nations has had an 'incomplete recovery' with a changing market in China.
'While everyone's cautiously optimistic, I think we all recognise that the relationship remains somewhat fragile, and that's why these regular government to government dialogues is just so important,' he told AAP.
Read more.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
26 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Trump's family business to build tower block in Romania
The Trump Organization - US President Donald Trump's family business - will team up with Romanian real estate developer SDC Imobiliare to build a tower block with luxury apartments in the capital, Bucharest. "Trump Tower Bucharest will be developed in the heart of Romania's capital, one of Europe's most vibrant and dynamic emerging markets, bringing premium residences under the Trump brand to the region," the companies said in a statement on Saturday. They did not specify the location or start date for work on the tower block, which is being branded as luxury residential apartments in Romania, the region's second-biggest economy. Romania's economy stalled in the first quarter amid a drawn-out political crisis and worries about a potential downturn, underperforming most of its peers in central and eastern Europe. Romania, a European Union and NATO member state, has found itself at the centre of a dispute between Europe and the Trump administration over democratic principles after the constitutional court in December cancelled an ongoing presidential vote due to suspicions of Russian meddling, denied by Moscow. US Vice President JD Vance has said Romania's decision to cancel the election - in which a far-right, pro-Russian candidate was the frontrunner - based on what he called "flimsy evidence" meant Bucharest did not share American values. The country re-ran its presidential ballot in May and centrist President Nicusor Dan won, with Trump later congratulating him on his victory.
The Age
3 hours ago
- The Age
In relation to the war in Gaza, inaction is consent
To submit a letter to The Age, email letters@ Please include your home address and telephone number. No attachments, please include your letter in the body of the email. See here for our rules and tips on getting your letter published. Inaction is consent On reading the article on East Jerusalem ' There's nothing the world can do about it ' (12/7) I couldn't stop thinking about the words of the man who watched his home be flattened: 'They are trying to break people, they want us to be nothing.' It stayed with me, not just because of its heartbreak, but of how those words contrasted with the voices of those working to make that outcome a reality. Australian-Israeli settler Daniel Luria, who proudly leads Ateret Cohanim's efforts to evict Palestinians and 'reclaim' homes, denies that Palestinians even exist as a people. They are 'illegal squatters'; he praises the use of courts to transfer land, and describes his mission as one of national rebirth. This is a slow-motion war, and it is being waged with bulldozers and land deeds instead of bombs. Australia recognises these settlements as illegal. So why is our outrage so well-mannered? I don't know what the world will do. But I know inaction is a form of consent. Fernanda Trecenti, Fitzroy Treading carefully Our leaders will have to tread carefully in considering any implementation of the points raised in Jillian Segal's antisemitism plan (Editorial, 12/7). The risk here is that a misjudged implementation of such strong measures carries a strong risk of hindering rather than enhancing our quest for continued cultural unity and understanding, which is one of the successful hallmarks of Australian society. Perhaps most difficult of all will be our achieving a better national understanding of the appallingly tragic Gazan situation beginning with an acceptance of the fact that it is this which in large measure lies at the heart of our destabilising antisemitism and Islamophobia. What is needed now is a better understanding of extremism and moderation on all sides in the Middle East – and the problematic role of the West in the Middle East so ably written about by highly regarded British journalist, the late Robert Fisk. So, we must tread carefully here, favouring educative understanding over punitive coercion lest the cure prove to be as bad – or worse – than the complaint. Terry Hewton, Henley Beach South, SA Violence no answer The treatment of non-Jewish residents in East Jerusalem is one ongoing issue within an intractable problem of history, religion and politics. Leaders of Israel and many other countries, plus organisations like Hamas and the PLO, have not done all they could to reach a compromise solution. Jerusalem, a Holy City for Jews, Muslims and Christians, should be under international governance, protecting access for all. A vote on this special status for Jerusalem, was passed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1947, within a two-state solution. It might not be accepted by the extremists on either side, but there is no realistic alternative. Neither side can ″win″ this forever war with more violence. John Hughes, Mentone Gift status at risk Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism Jillian Segal has recommended to the government that deductible gift status should be removed from charitable organisations that promote antisemitism. Amnesty International Medecins Sans Frontieres, and Human Rights Watch have all published lengthy reports finding that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Given Segal's adoption of the IHRA definition of antisemitism that conflates criticism of Israel with antisemitism, the deductible gift status of these independent organisations would be at risk if the government adopted Segal's recommendation.
Perth Now
3 hours ago
- Perth Now
US citizen killed in West Bank settler attack
The Israeli military is probing the death of a man in the town of Sinjil in the occupied West Bank. (AP PHOTO) The Israeli military is probing the death of a man in the town of Sinjil in the occupied West Bank. (AP PHOTO) Credit: AAP A Palestinian American man has been beaten to death by settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and a second man has been shot dead, the Palestinian Health Ministry says. US citizen Sayafollah Musallet, 20, also known as Saif, was severely beaten in the incident on Friday evening in Sinjil, north of Ramallah, the ministry said. Hussein Al-Shalabi, 23, was shot in the chest. Musallet's family, from Tampa, Florida, said in a statement that medics tried to reach him for three hours before his brother managed to carry him to an ambulance, but that he died before reaching the hospital. "This is an unimaginable nightmare and injustice that no family should ever have to face," the family statement said. "We demand the US State Department lead an immediate investigation and hold the Israeli settlers who killed Saif accountable for their crimes." A US State Department spokesperson said on Friday it was aware of the incident, but that the department had no further comment "out of respect for the privacy of the family and loved ones" of the reported victim. The Israeli military said Israel was probing the incident in the town of Sinjil. It said confrontations between Palestinians and settlers broke out after Palestinians threw rocks at Israelis, lightly injuring them. The military said forces were dispatched to the scene and used non-lethal weapons to disperse the crowds. Settler violence in the West Bank has risen since the start of Israel's war against Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza in late 2023, according to rights groups. Dozens of Israelis have also been killed in Palestinian street attacks in recent years and the Israeli military has intensified raids across the West Bank. US President Donald Trump in January rescinded sanctions imposed by the former Biden administration on Israeli settler groups and individuals accused of being involved in violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. Israeli killings of US citizens in the West Bank in recent years include those of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, Palestinian American teenager Omar Mohammad Rabea and Turkish American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi. The United Nations' highest court said in 2024 Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, and settlements there were illegal and should be withdrawn as soon as possible. Israel disputes this, citing historical and biblical ties to the land, which it captured in the 1967 Middle East War. The West Bank is among the territories that Palestinians seek for an independent state.
