Penny Wong says Australia is in a "permanent contest" with China in the Pacific; Adelaide Zoo announces a panda swap as part of international conservation efforts; And in golf, Bryson DeChambeau wins the third round of the US Open.
Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts.
In this bulletin;
- Penny Wong says Australia is in a "permanent contest" with China in the Pacific;
- Adelaide Zoo announces a panda swap as part of international conservation efforts;
- And in golf, Bryson DeChambeau wins the third round of the US Open.
TRANSCRIPT
Foreign Minister Penny Wong says Australia is in a "permanent contest" with China in the Pacific because the previous government abandoned its diplomatic role in the region.
Her comments point to tensions underlying the visit by Chinese second-in-command, Premier Li Qiang, who is in Australia to discuss trade and other issues with Australian leaders.
Mr Li's visit - the first by a Chinese premier in seven years - has been widely regarded as an indication the relationship is improving after a period of hostility, including a Chinese ban on Australian exports.
But Ms Wong says her government is still trying to repair damage done by the Coalition's approach to China.
She told the ABC the previous government "abandoned the field" in the Pacific and let others fill the gap.
"We are now in a position where Australia is a partner of choice, but the opportunity to be the only partner of choice has been lost by Mr Dutton and his colleagues and we're in a state of permanent contest in the Pacific - that's the reality. I wish there were a rewind button; we could recover the last ten years. But we don't (have one), we have to deal with what we have now, which is a permanent contest (in the Pacific)."
—
It's been "a very exciting morning" at Adelaide Zoo, staff say, after Chinese Premier Li Qiang invited Australia to continue its participation in the international panda conservation program.
Chief executive of Zoos South Australia, Elaine Bensted, says the offer means the zoo will receive two new young pandas in exchange for the zoo's older pair, Fu Ni and Wang Wang.
The popular duo have been residents of Adelaide Zoo for the past 15 years, and were the first pandas in the southern hemisphere.
"Look, Fu Ni and Wang Wang - we don't know exactly where they'll be returning in China, they have a number of panda bases which I must say, I've been to and (have) seen the pandas that return from international placements - they are treated like rockstars. Everyone knows their names and where they've been, and I'm sure it will be the same with Fu Ni and Wang Wang."
Ms Bensted says Fu Ni and Wang and Wang will remain at Adelaide Zoo and visible to the public until November.
—
In the United States, as many as ten people have been shot and wounded at a water park near Detroit - including children.
Police allege a man got out of a vehicle in front of Brooklands Plaza Splash pad park and fired about 30 shots from a semi-automatic Glock.
Officers could not confirm immediately if there were any fatalities, and said the suspect was still at large.
Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard says he does not believe the shooter knew the victims.
"So far, again, this is all super preliminary. It appears like the individual pulled up, exited a vehicle, approached the splash pad, opened fire, reloaded, opened fire, reloaded. Left. So very random at this point appears random. No connectivity to the victims."
—
Mortgage-holders are likely to be spared further increases on their debt, with economists predicting the Reserve Bank will hold off on rate hikes.
The RBA is due to meet over two days from Monday and will announce their decision on the cash rate on Tuesday.
Economic teams at all four of the big banks are expecting the benchmark rate to stay at 4.35 per cent, after months of aggressive rate increases since 2022 in a bid to tackle rising inflation.
All four major banks say they expect the next interest rate move to be downwards.
—
And in golf,
Former champion Bryson DeChambeau has emerged from the pack with a three-under-par 67 to claim the third-round US Open lead at Pinehurst No. 2.
Fellow American Patrick Cantlay, Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy and France's Matthieu Pavon are all three strokes back.
DeChambeau, who won the US Open in 2020, hasn't finished better than a tie for twentieth place since then.
He explained his unusual method of floating golf balls in Epsom salt* before playing, to find their centre of balance.
"It's just because of the manufacturing process there's always going to be an error, especially when it's a sphere. And then there's dimples on the edges, you can't get it get it perfectly in the centre. So what I'm doing is pretty much finding the 'unbalanced-ness' of it, how much out of balance it is. Heavy side floats to the bottom. Heavy side floats to the bottom, and then we mark the top with a dot to make sure it's always rolling over itself."
