AAP Rolling News Bulletin for June 14 at 0330
Fuel (MELBOURNE)
Australian motorists are in for higher prices at the bowser when temporary tax relief measures wrap up at the end of the month.
A fuel excise cut and GST rebate designed to ease surging costs for motorists amid the conflict in Iran are both set to expire on June 30.
Plans to repeal the 32 cent per litre tax break haven't changed, Energy Minister Chris Bowen told media on Saturday but added that the government would continue to assess the latest information.
"We've been very clear this was a temporary reduction in the excise; it was always intended to be temporary," he said.
"Our intention has been for it to come off at the end of the month and that remains the plan."
Search (MELBOURNE)
Police have recovered the body of a man and are desperately scouring a Sydney waterway and surrounds for a young girl.
The girl, who is believed to be six or seven years old, was reportedly spotted with the man in a small boat on the Parramatta River.
Police were called to Hen and Chicken Bay in Concord in inner-west Sydney about 11.45am on Saturday following reports a man's body had been found in the water.
Responding to witness reports the man and girl had been seen together, a search was launched to locate the child.
The man has yet to be identified.
A command post has been established at the scene and specialist resources are assisting.
Anyone with information is urged to contact police.
Shark (SYDNEY)
A woman is fighting for life following a shark attack at one of Australia's busiest beaches.
Emergency services were called to Coogee Beach shortly after 11am on Saturday, following reports a swimmer had been bitten by a shark.
Bystanders pulled her from the water and commenced first aid before emergency services arrived.
Police rendered first aid to the woman, believed to be aged in her 30s, who had suffered serious arm and leg injuries.
Ambulance paramedics then continued her treatment before police cleared nearby Coogee Oval to facilitate the landing of the Careflight helicopter.
The woman was airlifted to hospital.
Nearby beaches including Coogee, Clovelly and Bronte have been closed.
Ebola (NAIROBI)
The United Nations refugee agency has confirmed the first Ebola-related deaths in a displacement camp in eastern Congo, as aid workers warn of a high risk the disease could spread rapidly in overcrowded sites.
The two victims were internally displaced people living in the Kpangba camp, which hosts 30,000 internally displaced people, the UNHCR said on Thursday.
As of Friday, Congo had reported 689 confirmed cases and 136 deaths in an outbreak that has also spread to neighbouring Uganda, which has reported 19 cases.
The virus has spread across three provinces since the World Health Organisation declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on May 17.
The affected provinces - Ituri, South Kivu and North Kivu - have been devastated by decades of conflict and are home to more than five million displaced people.
Iran (WASHINGTON, D. C.)
Negotiators for the United States and Iran areclose to the finish line of a deal aimed at ending their three-month war and it could be signed in the coming days, a senior US official says.
A painstakingly negotiated agreement would include a commitment by Iran to neither develop nor procure nuclear weapons and would reopen the Strait of Hormuz to normal oil traffic and lift the US blockade, the official told reporters.
It would only permit the release of frozen Iranian assets based on whether Iranian leaders meet the requirements laid out for them, the official said.
"If we see them honouring their end of the bargain, it's going to be very good for Iran, and if we see them not honouring their end of the bargain, then they're not going to get anything out of it," the official said.
SpaceX (NEW YORK CITY)
SpaceX has jumped almost 20 per cent in its Nasdaq debut as investors piled into the world's largest initial public offering and bet on Elon Musk's sprawling empire spanning rockets to AI.
The launch was smoother than many observers expected, with trading kicking off late on Friday morning, swinging for most of the session between gains of 15 per cent and 30 per cent above Thursday's pricing with little in the way of volatility.
Shares ended the day at about $US161 a share, up 19 per cent, making SpaceX the sixth-largest US company by market value, behind only Nvidia, Apple, Google parent Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon.
The trading, which surpassed 500 million shares, or about $US80 billion ($A114 billion) in volume, capped off a lead-up fraught with anxiety over the exchange's ability to handle the launch, particularly after a recent swoon in technology shares that raised concerns about the stratospheric gains in AI-linked names.
Ukraine (KYIV)
Ukraine will hike military wages and seek to recruit more fighters abroad, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says as the army faces a manpower shortage after four years of war with Russia.
Zelenskiy's government said in May it would study possible measures to boost military personnel numbers after talks on how to end the war with Russia stalled.
"We agreed on how to increase the financial resilience of our defence and further transformation of the Ukrainian army," Zelenskiy said in his daily address after meeting key cabinet ministers.
"The cabinet of ministers will approve a specific mechanism, and the government should start the first new payments as early as June," he added.
Ukraine has secured a 90 billion euro ($A148 billion) loan from the European Union, allowing the government to increase defence spending to a record 4.4 trillion hryvnias ($A138 billion) this year.
UK Royals (LONDON)
Britain's King Charles has celebrated his official birthday with a ceremony showcasing the British Army's ceremonial prowess.
Charles took part in the famous Trooping the Colour event where military pomp and pageantry were on display in the heart of London.
The Princess of Wales and her children joined the Queen and thousands of spectators at Horse Guards Parade in Whitehall to view the spectacle featuring some of the UK's most prestigious regiments.
Trooping the Colour is as much a social occasion as a ceremonial event and stands around Horse Guards Parade were filled with about 8000 family members of the guards and officers on parade.
Crowds gathered in The Mall to watch the royal family's carriage procession from Buckingham Palace with Charles and Camilla in the middle of a Sovereign's Escort provided by the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment.
In finance ...
Paramount (WASHINGTON, D. C.)
The US Justice Department's Antitrust Division has cleared Paramount Skydance Corp's planned acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, Politico reports, citing two people familiar with the matter.
The deal is worth $US110 billion ($A156 billion).
Justice officials determined the transaction did not pose a threat to competition, according to the sources.
Politico on Friday reported, citing one source, the department approved the merger without requiring any divestitures, behavioural remedies or concessions.
Spokespeople for Paramount and the DOJ spokesperson declined to comment.
The clearance gives Paramount another regulatory green light to point to as it seeks to ward off a potential challenge to the deal by California and other states.
In April, Paramount also asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to approve foreign investments backing the acquisition. US senators have raised concerns about Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds and Chinese companies taking part.
Markets (NEW YORK CITY)
US stocks ended higher on Friday as investors held out hope for a peace deal between Iran and the United States and as SpaceX shares surged in their debut, making it Wall Street's biggest public listing in history.
The United States and Iran signalled that an agreement to end their war was close, with a senior US administration official saying a draft proposal was in place that was liked by both sides. President Donald Trump has said several times since mid-March that a deal with Iran to end the war was close.
Market participants were glued to shares of Elon Musk's SpaceX , which began trading on the Nasdaq on Friday. Its shares closed up 19.2 per cent at $US160.95 ($A228.36), well above the IPO price of $US135 ($A192) apiece. Its market capitalisation was last at $US2.1 trillion ($A3 trillion).
In entertainment ...
Styles (LONDON)
Harry Styles paid tribute to the late British artist David Hockney as he kicked off his record-breaking residency at London's Wembley Stadium.
The One Direction star will play 12 nights at the venue in a bid to beat Coldplay's record of 10 performances there last year.
The string of shows is poised to smash the record for the most performances by any artist in a single year at the national stadium.
Styles will also beat pop superstar Taylor Swift's record for the most concerts performed at Wembley by a solo artist during a single concert run.
She performed eight shows at the venue as part of the Eras Tour in 2024.
In a tribute to Hockney, whose death at 88 was announced just hours before his show, Styles flashed up a quote from the artist on screens around the venue before performing his hit Aperture.
Mirren (LONDON)
Dame Helen Mirren has said she is "incredibly proud" after being made Companion of Honour in the King's Birthday Honours.
The Academy Award-winning actress, 80, known for The Queen and Prime Suspect, was recognised on Friday for her services to drama, making it onto an exclusive list of only 65 people who hold the title at any one time.
In a video message shared on her Instagram account on Saturday, Dame Helen expressed her gratitude for the "incredible honour" and that she wished her parents could be here to see it.
She said: "I would like to communicate how incredibly proud I am of being offered to become a companion of honour to my country, Britain, the country that I love so much.
In sport ...
Com26 Swi (SYDNEY)
Facing a changing of the guard, freestyle stars Mollie O'Callaghan and Lani Pallister will lead Australia's all-conquering squad in search of more Commonwealth Games gold.
A 42-strong team was named on Saturday night at the end of the six-day trials in Sydney, with 14 swimmers to make their senior team debut in Glasgow next month.
O'Callaghan and Pallister are primed to build on Australia's winning ways, with fellow Paris Olympic gold medallists Meg Harris and Shayna Jack completing the freestyle relay team.
Australia claimed 25 gold medals out of a possible 52 at the 2022 Birmingham Games, with the nation's women freestylers claiming victory in all but one of the 15 races.
The Dolphins also clinched 21 silver and 19 bronze medals, while runners-up England managed just eight golds out of a total of 32 medals.
AFL Bombers (MELBOURNE)
Interim Essendon coach Dean Solomon insists he is yet to speak with Bombers president Andrew Welsh about the possibility of taking on the senior role permanently.
In his first press conference after Brad Scott was sacked as Bombers coach last month, Solomon declared he would not be seeking the position on a full-time basis.
But a bombshell report this week stated Solomon is Welsh's preferred candidate for the top job, even over James Hird.
But Solomon, who played in Essendon's last premiership back in 2000, is adamant coaching the club beyond this year is not on his radar and is yet to speak with Welsh.
"The club is obviously working behind the scenes about what the next coach would look like, time frames," Solomon said after Essendon's 45-point defeat to Melbourne on Saturday.
Ends Bulletin
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