POLITICS & POLICY

The bushfire that raged through Dereel in western Victoria on Thursday, although fanned by the continuing dry hot summer, may have been intentionally staged up, according to arson detectives.

The standoff between the Mongolian government and Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) is worth $303 million in a planned progressive royalty to be collected on the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine.

Bell FX, FXstreet, IG Markets Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar remains firm and trading USD 1.0500 heading into the start of the local trading day, but some bearish movement is seen going towards the Easter holiday.

Happy Easter! Oh, wait, it's April Fool's Day, too. Perhaps it's time for some funny tricks on your children's annual Easter Egg Hunt? Whatever you do, keep it light and keep your "targets" out of harm's way. If you're looking for some funny photos or memes to post to your social media page, start the slideshow and pick your favorite.

A fast-moving bushfire west of Melbourne has claimed several buildings, with at least 40 more houses under threat. Three firefighters and one resident have been reportedly injured.

Issues on funding as well as where to house the future development bank to rival the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have stalled the member nations of the BRICS group (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).

Chinese netizens are now wild with fury after reports with accompanying photographs showing a 7-month-old baby forcibly aborted out of his mother's womb by Chinese family planning authorities went viral over the weekend.

IG Markets, Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar has maintained its overnight gains trading within the range of USD1.0489 to 1.0500 USD at the start of the trading day.

What stopped the global financial crisis of 2008 from getting completely out of hand? Governments did. They bailed out, merged, financed, guaranteed, and handed out 'Get Out of Jail Free' cards for anyone who found themselves in trouble. Without government intervention, the financial system would've failed.

It's only end of March but families, friends and Australian troops stationed at Afghanistan have been given an early Christmas treat as the Australian government closes down its main base at Tarin Kot by end of the year, effectively sending back home 1,000 troops.

Contributions led by emerging Asian economies such as Indonesia, Mexico, Turkey and China have catapulted Asia to become the leader in cutting carbon emissions for better environmental conditions. However, on a per country level, Australia listed way down below.

After suspense was increasing to almost unimaginable levels, at last Cyprus secured a bailout, thus avoiding bankruptcy. It seems that negotiations were indeed dramatic, but the wraith of another crisis in Europe was headed off at least for the nearest future.

Residents in retirement villages, for the very first time, as well as low income earners in the state of NSW are poised to receive energy rebates to assist them manage their respective escalating power bills, the state government announced on Tuesday.

The same-sex marriage debate in the U.S. continues to heat up and will be a level higher with the Supreme Court hearing arguments on Tuesday on the challenge to California's ban on gay marriages and Proposition 8 raised by lesbian couple Kris Perry and Sandy Stier.

Banks across Cyprus are expected to be deluged with account holders withdrawing their money despite the setting aside of the controversial deposit tax when the lenders open their door once again on Thursday, March 28. The Central Bank of Cyprus, which ordered all banks closed since March 16 to prevent a bank run, allowed on Monday the banks to reopen by Thursday following a new bailout scheme.

Bell FX, CMC Markets Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar was well bid in overnight trading, particularly against the EUR, as initial optimism over the Cyprus bank bailout plan gave way to concerns about what it could mean for other European economies. Nonetheless, this does not remove the cautious stance of most investors leading into the Easter holiday.

Global coffee company and coffeehouse chain Starbucks Corporation had forecast China will become its second largest coffee-drinking market by 2015, possibly bumping off Canada. To facilitate this, it plans to open a whopping 1,500 number of stores across China in the next two years, to turn the tea-loving nation into a coffee-loving one.

As expected, Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced on Monday her cabinet revamp after Thursday's leadership challenge dare made by senior Labor Minister Simon Crean.

Westfield Group has divested half of its controlling shares in six malls in Florida, United States for US$700 million as part of its continuing strategy efforts to reallocate shopping center interests. The sell-off was made to U.S. real estate firm O'Connor Capital Partners.

El Pais, a Spanish newspaper has retracted a column that compared German Chancellor Angela Merkel with German dictator Adolf Hitler. The column was written by economist Juan Torres Lopez of the University of Seville and published on its Web site and Audalusia printed regional edition.

The proposed tax on bank deposits in Cyprus has taken its toll with the reported bombing of a Bank of Cyprus branch in Limassol. Reports said that an improvised explosive device caused the blast which destroyed the window of the lender and created a small fire.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: It was a quiet night of trading on Friday as financial markets await the result of ongoing discussions in Cyprus.

Expect bloodbath in the Gillard cabinet following the leadership challenge dare made by senior Labor Minister Simon Crean. Reports said that Australian Labor Party (ALP) leader and Prime Minister Julia Gillard will announce on Monday a cabinet revamp following recent developments in the party.

Web site Tech Crunch reported on Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Defense is allegedly planning to purchase 650,000 units of iOS devices, in effect ditching the newly released BlackBerry 10 over cost considerations.

The worst you can get from a government is tyranny. Tyranny comes in many forms, such as excessive taxation, reckless foreign wars, and persistent legislative attacks on individual liberty by psychopathic political meddlers.

Combined forces led by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and local state police of Victoria have arrested 27 people in a year-long bust operation that involved a South East Asian drug syndicate based in Melbourne and Sydney.

At least 20 people were injured, two of whom are in critical condition, after tornadoes and powerful storms slashed through Victoria's northeast on Thursday night. It also toppled trees and ripped off roofs and shattered glasses from windows of dozens of homes and businesses.

The always entertaining Eurosceptic politician Nigel Farage summed up how Europeans should interpret the Cyprus deposit theft : 'Get your money out while you can!'

After throwing the Australian Labor Party (ALP) on Thursday in chaos by calling for settling of the party's leadership issue, Labor senior minister Simon Crean is paying a heavy price.