Renju Jose

Australia on Friday designated the West Peron undersea rock formation, off ​the country's north coast, as a ‌storage site for the 8 million metric ton-per-year Bonaparte carbon capture and storage project proposed by ​Japan's Inpex .

New Zealand's Parliament was dissolved on Thursday, marking the official start of campaigning for ​next month's national election, which is shaping ‌up to be a tight contest between the ruling centre-right coalition and a Labour-led left bloc.

The Trump administration has criticised ​Australia's proposed social media algorithm reforms, which would give users the option to choose the ‌content on their feeds, warning that Washington would likely view them as "facilitating censorship".

Australia will stop foreign students from bringing partners and children to ​accompany them while they study and tighten working holiday visa rules, a senior minister said on Thursday, amid growing debate ‌over high migration levels.

New Zealand's manufacturing activity continued ​to expand in ‌August, though at a slower pace than the ​previous month, ​as businesses cited cost-of-living pressures ⁠and the Middle ​East conflict as ​factors weighing on growth.

Australia said on Wednesday it sees no risk to its relationship with the United States after reports that the Trump administration criticised Canberra's ​plans to target social media algorithms, which critics say would curtail ‌free speech.

Australia targets social media algorithms with new user-choice rules

Australia and the United States said they would boost their defence ties in a move that could expand the U.S. military presence in Australia, while ​strengthening deterrence across the Pacific, where China has been expanding its influence.

AI-generated music will be excluded from Australia's music charts starting this week, the country's peak ‌music trade group said, following controversy over an Australian DJ's cover of Madonna's "Like a Prayer" topping local music charts.

KPMG Australia, embroiled in scandal ‌over the misuse of confidential client information, said on Monday it would cut about 5% of its workforce, affecting 27 partners and around 360 employees, and warned of difficult market conditions next year.

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said on ​Monday his party will introduce a bill in Parliament that seeks ‌to ban children under 16 from using social media, proposing fines of up to 10% of a platform's global revenue for non-compliance.