Dutton has attempted a softening on some fronts – while retaining the “hard man” image on others as he seek to shore up the Chinese vote before the next election.

The growth in export value was largely driven by a surge in shipments to mainland China, following the removal of tariffs on Australian bottled wine at the end of March last year.

China's imports of iron ore and seaborne coal are on track for a soft start to the year, with January arrivals declining to multi-month lows.

Australia Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Wednesday urged Australians to be cautious when using Chinese AI model DeepSeek, the latest government to warn over its use.

By bringing together their fifth-generation fighter jets for joint exercises, Australia, Japan, and the U.S. have sent a strong message about their commitment to security in the Indo-Pacific.

Australia’s dilemma is that there is a tension in balancing the commercial advantages of cheaper Chinese technology with our national security interests.

Labor and the Coalition are trying to outdo each other over who will be the best friend of China after the next federal election, in a dramatic shift from the COVID era trade war when Scott Morrison was Prime Minister. Trade Minister Don Farrell has told 7NEWS he wants to take the trading relationship with Beijing to a new record high.

Australia's science minister, Ed Husic, has become the first member of a Western government to raise privacy concerns about DeepSeek, the Chinese chatbot causing turmoil on the markets and in the tech industry.

Much of the Western World is rapidly deindustrialising to meet ‘net zero’ emissions targets. For Example, the United Kingdom’s stringent restrictions on fossil fuel energy use have driven up energy costs,

SYDNEY – Australia’s Defence Minister Richard Marles said he has spoken of the importance of American leadership in the Indo-Pacific region in a “very warm” call with new US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.

The rising popularity of DeepSeek, a Chinese AI platform, has raised data privacy concerns. While Australia has asked users to be cautious, Italy’s Data Protection Agency has posed questions about how the chatbot uses personal data.

Beneath the fertile farmlands of Victoria in southeast Australia lie deposits of mineral sands that miners and politicians are keen to tap for rare-earth elements, ingredients in everything from EV batteries to wind turbines to advanced weapons.