POLITICS & POLICY

Australian teens aged 17 and 16 were believed to have crossed the border to fight with the ISIS in Iraq.

Officials from a select group of pariah states have been included into a list of "persona non grata" as Canada observes its national day on July 1.

A 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck off near the uninhabited islands of the South Sandwich Islands far off South America in the South Atlantic Ocean early Sunday, the US Geological Survey said.

Controversial Canadian politician Rob Ford, who has been in rehab for a couple of months, is expected to return on Monday, June 30.

A woman died in Central Coast due to USB charger electrocution

Canadian food retailer Sobeys and its parent company Empire Co. will be closing 50 stores all across the country due to underperformance. Majority of the closing stores are located in Western Canada.

The New Zealand Bankers' Association has expressed its support for Justice Minister Judith Collin's anti-corruption bill to deter domestic and international organised crime. The proposed new law would require banks to report international wire transfers of more than $1,000. The association said the bill can help maintain New Zealand's reputation overseas.

Faced with a dilemma of possible delayed shipments of grain by rail this spring, Canada has been forced to review its existing transportation laws a year ahead of schedule.

The World Meteorological Organisation, the UN's weather agency experts, has placed at 80 per cent the chances of an El Niño weather event recurring in the Pacific Ocean by year-end, between October and November.

Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant that got crippled by a tsunami in March 2011 after a magnitude 9 earthquake struck Japan's shores, has voted down motions to permanently close all its atomic plant projects during its annual general meeting on Thursday.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar has consolidated above 94 cents after a quiet session.

The Australian Senate will vote on the proposed repeal of the Labor government-initiated carbon tax sometime between July 7 and 15. Prime Minister Tony Abbott expressed confidence on Thursday that the legislation would pass following his meeting with Clive Palmer who agreed to support the measure.

In what many described as a surprising turn of events, Al Gore has announced he is backing climate change sceptic and Australian PUP leader Cliver Palmer in a press conference in Canberra.

The burgeoning climate change could cost U.S. businesses multibillions over the next 25 years, a bipartisan report released on Tuesday said.

Damages of the burgeoning global warming scenario in the European Union could hit 190 billion euros ($259 billion) a year in the 2071-2100 period, according to a new report by the Joint Research Centre, the European Commission's in-house science service.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian Dollar has rebounded half of one US Cent on the back of weaker-than-expected US economic data overnight, but this data's impact should be short lived.

A group composed of scientists from around the world has targeted New Zealand's Southern Alps for drilling, in the hopes their study would enable them to understand how earthquakes are produced and set off.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority is out with guidelines for whale watching

A tornado classified as an EF1 twister ripped through the town of New Tecumseth in Ontario, Canada, topping down hydro lines and trees. Environment Canada said its maximum winds were between 135 and 175 kilometres per hour. Reports of fatalities have yet to be received.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has called his government the "best friend workers of Australia have ever had" in a speech defending his "tough budget" including policies affecting young and unemployed Australians.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian dollar declined overnight as fighting in Iraq weighs on risk appetite.

Senator Christine Milne said on Tuesday that the Greens Party will not support the increase in fuel tax proposed by the Coalition in the federal budget for 2014-15. The move is expected to blow a multibillion-dollar hole in the first budget of the Abbott government.

Iraq Crisis: ISIS militants went hunting for wives as children were armed as snipers

Palmer United Party (PUP) leader Clive Palmer is on the brink of wielding his power in the Senate in July. In a speech in Canberra, Palmer outlined what he would if he was given the chance to be the prime minister of Australia.

Chelsea Clinton, daughter of former U.S. President Bill and Ex-secretary Hillary Clinton, has revealed in an interview published over the weekend that she doesn't care about the money why she had let go of her lucrative jobs in exchange of doing family's philanthropic activities.

Kim Jong-un’s may soon punish Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop, following her anti-DPRK statements

MH370 was not a priority for international traffic controllers, says MAS Boss Hugh Dunleavy

Canadian journalist Mohamed Fahmy who works for Al Jazeera English was sentenced to 7-year imprisonment in Egypt, and the ruling has enraged the international community.

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The Australian dollar remains above 0.9400 cents on the back of surprisingly strong Chinese manufacturing figures.