At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia’s housing market appears to be in a temporary holding pattern, with many buyers delaying property purchases while waiting for greater certainty, according to the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia. The organisation says mortgage brokers are seeing strong demand for advice, but fewer people are submitting home loan applications. Many investors are taking extra time to assess the impact of recent federal budget changes before making decisions. Despite the slowdown, the association believes the market has paused rather than entered a long-term downturn, expecting activity to recover as confidence improves. Recent data shows national home prices remain about 0.7% below their record high, although conditions vary between cities. Sydney and Melbourne have recorded price declines, while Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth continue to sit at or near peak levels. Some economists expect the housing market to weaken further if interest rates remain high, with forecasts suggesting prices in Sydney and Melbourne could fall further over the next few years. Others argue ongoing housing shortages could help support prices once buyer confidence returns. Source : News.com Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. ශ්‍රී ලංකා අපනයන සංවර්ධන මණ්ඩලය පවසන්නේ, 2026 වසරේ මුල් මාස පහ තුළ ශ්‍රී ලංකාව ඇමෙරිකානු ඩොලර් බිලියන 7.3 ඉක්මවූ අපනයන ආදායමක් උපයා ඇති අතර, එය මෙරට අපනයන ක්ෂේත්‍රයේ ශක්තිමත් කාර්යසාධනයක් පිළිබිඹු කරන බවයි. මෙම ආදායම පසුගිය වසරේ අනුරූප කාලසීමාවට සාපේක්ෂව සියයට 7.5ක වර්ධනයක් පෙන්නුම් කරන බවද එම මණ්ඩලය සඳහන් කළේය. නවතම අපනයන කාර්යසාධනය පිළිබඳ අදහස් දක්වමින් ශ්‍රී ලංකා අපනයන සංවර්ධන මණ්ඩලයේ සභාපති මංගල විජේසිංහ මහතා ප්‍රකාශ කළේ, ඇඟලුම්, පොල් ආශ්‍රිත නිෂ්පාදන සහ රබර් කර්මාන්තය අපනයන ආදායම් වර්ධනයට විශාලතම දායකත්වය ලබාදෙන ක්ෂේත්‍ර අතර ඉදිරියෙන්ම පවතින බවයි. ඔහු සඳහන් කළේ, ඇඟලුම් කර්මාන්තය තවදුරටත් ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ ප්‍රධානතම අපනයන ආදායම් උපයන ක්ෂේත්‍රය ලෙස පවතින අතර, වසරේ මුල් මාස පහ තුළ එම අංශයෙන් පමණක් ඇමෙරිකානු ඩොලර් බිලියන 2.063ක අපනයන ආදායමක් උපයා ඇති බවයි. ඇඟලුම් කර්මාන්තයේ අනාගත ඉලක්ක පිළිබඳව අදහස් දක්වමින් විජේසිංහ මහතා පැවසුවේ, ඉදිරි වසර පහ තුළ ඇඟලුම් ක්ෂේත්‍රයෙන් පමණක් ඇමෙරිකානු ඩොලර් බිලියන 8 ඉක්මවූ අපනයන ආදායමක් උපයා ගැනීම ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ අභිලාෂකාමී ඉලක්කයක් බවයි. ශ්‍රී ලංකා අපනයන සංවර්ධන මණ්ඩලයේ සභාපතිවරයා පොල් ආශ්‍රිත අපනයනවල ප්‍රගතියද අවධාරණය කරමින් සඳහන් කළේ, වසරේ මුල් මාස පහ තුළ එම අංශයෙන් ඇමෙරිකානු ඩොලර් මිලියන 512ක පමණ ආදායමක් උපයා ඇති බවයි. පසුගිය වසරේ අනුරූප කාලසීමාවට සාපේක්ෂව පොල් ආශ්‍රිත අපනයන සියයට 20කට වැඩි වර්ධනයක් වාර්තා කර ඇති අතර, එය ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ පොල් ආශ්‍රිත නිෂ්පාදන සඳහා ජාත්‍යන්තර වෙළෙඳපොළේ ඉහළ යමින් පවතින ඉල්ලුම පිළිබිඹු කරන බවද ඔහු පෙන්වා දුන්නේය. රබර් කර්මාන්තයද සිය ධනාත්මක වර්ධන ප්‍රවණතාව අඛණ්ඩව පවත්වාගෙන යමින් සිටින බව විජේසිංහ මහතා පැවසීය. පසුගිය වසරේදී එම ක්ෂේත්‍රය ඇමෙරිකානු ඩොලර් මිලියන 900කට ආසන්න අපනයන ආදායමක් උපයා ඇති අතර, මෙම වසරේ මුල් මාස පහ තුළ පමණක් ඇමෙරිකානු ඩොලර් මිලියන 404ක ආදායමක් වාර්තා කර තිබේ. ඔහුට අනුව, රබර් අපනයන ආදායම පසුගිය වසරේ අනුරූප කාලසීමාවට සාපේක්ෂව සියයට 5කට ආසන්න වර්ධනයක් පෙන්නුම් කර ඇත. අනාගත ඉලක්ක පිළිබඳව අදහස් දක්වමින් විජේසිංහ මහතා සඳහන් කළේ, රබර් අපනයන ක්ෂේත්‍රය තවදුරටත් පුළුල් කිරීමේ පැහැදිලි අරමුණක් පවතින අතර, දිගුකාලීන ඉලක්කය වන්නේ එම කර්මාන්තය මඟින් ඇමෙරිකානු ඩොලර් බිලියන 2ක අපනයන ආදායමක් උපයා ගැනීම බවයි. Source : News First More updates to come on AusNewsLanka.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Telstra has apologised after a nationwide network outage disrupted voice and data services, affecting customers across Australia's major cities. The company said around 90% of affected services had been restored by Wednesday, but some users continued to experience intermittent issues. Telstra said there is currently no evidence the outage was caused by malicious activity, with investigations continuing to determine the cause. The disruption also affected several mobile providers that use the Telstra network, including Boost Mobile, Belong, ALDI Mobile, Tangerine and Everyday Mobile. While Telstra said the core triple-0 emergency call system remained operational, authorities confirmed some callers experienced connection problems. Welfare checks are being carried out for affected emergency calls, and Australians are being urged not to make test calls to triple-0. Anyone unable to connect should try another phone, a landline or Wi-Fi calling. The Australian Communications and Media Authority has launched an investigation into whether Telstra met its regulatory obligations during the outage. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the disruption as unacceptable and said the government is working closely with Telstra and emergency services while the investigation continues. Meanwhile, Telstra shares fell during Wednesday trading as the company worked to restore remaining services. Source : News.com Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australian businesses are facing increasing pressure from rising costs, higher taxes and expensive energy bills, with calls for stronger government support for local industries. Federal independent MP Dai Le said many long-running family businesses are struggling to survive, with some owners even working without taking a wage to keep their companies operating. She warned that without more support, Australia could become increasingly dependent on imported goods as local manufacturers and retailers continue to close. Businesses are dealing with higher insurance costs, increased supply expenses and rising energy prices. Ms Le said many companies believe their actual cost increases are much higher than official inflation figures suggest. The concerns come as several major retailers collapse or restructure. Shoe retailer Betts has entered administration and announced plans to close 20 stores, while Barbeques Galore, Lincraft and Glue Store have also faced closures or financial difficulties. Ms Le is calling for more government investment in Australian-made products, including a proposal requiring at least 30% of goods used in Commonwealth projects to come from local suppliers. She also criticised the federal government’s $22.7 billion Future Made in Australia plan, arguing that traditional industries such as manufacturing, textiles and footwear need greater support. She said protecting local industries is essential to maintaining jobs, skills and Australia’s manufacturing future. Source : News.com Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. A suspected arson attack has damaged multiple businesses in Melbourne’s inner east, prompting fresh concerns over a series of recent firebombings. Emergency crews responded to a major fire on Victoria Street, Richmond, shortly after 4:15am on Monday. More than 80 firefighters and 30 fire trucks worked to bring the blaze under control after flames spread through at least 10 businesses. Police believe offenders rammed a vehicle into a tobacco shop before setting it alight and fleeing the scene. No injuries have been reported, but nearby properties were also damaged. Yarra Mayor Stephen Jolly described the repeated attacks as a serious concern, saying the growing number of firebombings is creating fear among local businesses and residents. The incident is the third suspected firebombing in Richmond within six weeks, following similar attacks on Bridge Road and Swan Street. Authorities closed Victoria Street between Church Street and Hoddle Street, suspended several tram services, and issued a smoke warning for the surrounding area. Victoria Police have established a crime scene and are urging anyone with CCTV, dashcam footage or information to contact investigators. Source : SBS News More updates to come on AusNewsLanka.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. A rare weather event in Tasmania has triggered the icy conditions being felt across south-east Australia this week. The Bureau of Meteorology recorded a mean sea level pressure of 1044.5hPa at Ouse, Tasmania, setting what is expected to be Australia’s highest recorded atmospheric pressure, surpassing the previous record set in 1967. The record was caused by a powerful high-pressure system combining with a deep low-pressure system over the Tasman Sea, creating stable but exceptionally cold conditions. The weather system has brought frosty mornings and chilly temperatures across several states. Melbourne dropped to 3.2°C on Monday and is expected to remain cold throughout the week, while Hobart is forecast to see overnight lows of around 3°C. Canberra is also set for several freezing mornings, with widespread frost expected over the coming days. Some of the coldest temperatures were recorded in Coldstream, Victoria (-2.7°C) and Liawenee, Tasmania (-8.1°C), highlighting the intensity of the cold snap. Source : 9 News Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Tighter bail laws are being introduced in Queensland to crack down on youth crime, after the state government said it was getting “fed up” with repeat offenders being released on bail only to then reoffend. Repeat offenders who commit serious crimes while on bail will be charged under a brand new offence, under the next phase of the Adult Crime, Adult Time plans. The new offence will have a minimum mandatory sentence for these repeat offenders, and will come into effect by the end of 2026, the Crisafulli Government said. Premier David Crisafulli said Breach Bail, Go to Jail for Adult Crime, Adult Time, would continue making Queensland safer, and build on the progress already turning the tide on youth crime. “Breach Bail Go to Jail is the next phase of Adult Crime, Adult Time, which is holding youth offenders accountable for the first time in a long time,” he said. “We’re heading in the right direction and we’ve heard from Queenslanders who are telling us to keep going, and we will with reforms to Labor’s weak bail laws. “If a Court gives a youth criminal bail and they reoffend with a serious crime, that youth criminal will get a minimum mandatory sentence behind bars, under these reforms. “ The new laws mean if you breach bail you will go to jail, the Premier said. “We promised to make Queensland safer and while we know the monumental task this is, we know our Adult Crime, Adult Time plan is working and we’re going to continue rolling out stronger laws to restore safety,” he said. Meanwhile, Minister for Youth Justice and Victim Support Laura Gerber said the changes are much needed, and have been “a decade in the making”. “Labor’s weak laws and fewer police created a Youth Crime Crisis which left Queenslanders in fear and youth offenders walking free,” she said. “Labor cultivated a generation of untouchables and left Queenslanders victim to skyrocketing crime. “We are turning the tide and Adult Crime, Adult Time is making a difference, with victim numbers down 7.2 per cent in the first year, trending down for the first time in a decade. “Overwhelming Queenslanders are telling us our stronger laws are working and they want us to keep going, we are continuing to drive this forward. “Bail is a privilege, not a right and if repeat offenders are breaching it, they should and will go to jail under this next phase of Adult Crime, Adult Time. “In contrast Labor voted against Adult Crime, Adult Time and have already announced they want to wind it back and raise the age of criminal responsibility so youth criminals can’t be held accountable for their heinous crimes.” Source : News.com Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. ශ්‍රී ලංකා රේගු දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව (Sri Lanka Customs Department) විසින් වසරේ පළමු අර්ධ වසර සඳහා නියමිත ආදායම් ඉලක්කය ඉක්මවා රුපියල් බිලියන 1,373.7ක ආදායමක් උපයා ඇති බව රාජ්‍ය ආයතනය නිකුත් කළ නිවේදනයක සඳහන් වේ. මෙම කාලසීමාව සඳහා රේගු දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවට නියම කර තිබූ ආදායම් ඉලක්කය රුපියල් බිලියන 1,060.5ක් වූ අතර, ඒ අනුව ඉලක්කය රුපියල් බිලියන 313කින් ඉක්මවා ඇති බවද වාර්තා වේ. 2026 වසර සඳහා රේගු දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවට පවරා ඇති සමස්ත ආදායම් ඉලක්කය රුපියල් බිලියන 2,206කි. රේගු මාධ්‍ය ප්‍රකාශක සහ ජ්‍යෙෂ්ඨ අධ්‍යක්ෂ චන්දන පුංචිහේවා මහතා පවසන්නේ, පවතින ප්‍රවණතාව සැලකිල්ලට ගනිමින් පසුගිය වසරේ වාර්තාගත රුපියල් ට්‍රිලියන 2.5ක වාර්ෂික ආදායමද මෙම වසරේදී ඉක්මවා යා හැකි බවට විශ්වාසය පවතින බවයි. ජූලි මාසය සඳහා නියමිත ආදායම් ඉලක්කය රුපියල් බිලියන 192.4ක් වන අතර, මාසයේ පළමු දින දෙක තුළදීම රුපියල් බිලියන 31ක ආදායමක් දැනටමත් උපයාගෙන ඇති බවද ඔහු සඳහන් කළේය. කෙසේ වෙතත්, මෝටර් රථ ආනයන සීමා හේතුවෙන් වාහන අංශයෙන් ලැබෙන ආදායමේ පහළ යාමක් දක්නට ලැබෙන බවද චන්දන පුංචිහේවා මහතා වැඩිදුරටත් ප්‍රකාශ කළේය. Source : The Morning News More updates to come on AusNewsLanka.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australian borrowers may have to wait until 2027 for interest rate relief, according to a new survey of leading economists. The latest Australian Financial Review poll found that more than half of the 32 economists surveyed believe the Reserve Bank’s cash rate has already peaked at 4.35 per cent, making another rate rise less likely. However, most economists do not expect rate cuts any time soon. Almost all respondents said the RBA is likely to keep rates on hold until at least 2027, with many predicting cuts will not begin until the second half of the year. The Reserve Bank left interest rates unchanged at its June meeting, citing slower consumer spending, rising unemployment and a cooling housing market. However, Governor Michele Bullock has made it clear that further rate increases remain an option if inflation stays too high. Economists are also closely watching global developments, including tensions in the Middle East, which could keep inflation elevated and delay any move to lower rates. While ANZ, NAB and Commonwealth Bank believe rates have reached their peak, AMP and Westpac are forecasting up to two more rate hikes, potentially lifting the cash rate to 4.85 per cent by the end of the year. Higher borrowing costs continue to put pressure on Australian households. More than 1.5 million mortgage holders are estimated to be experiencing mortgage stress, while over 65,000 people have already contacted the National Debt Helpline this year, with mortgage repayments remaining the leading concern. Source : 9 News Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Department of Home Affairs has increased visa application fees for most visa categories, with the new charges applying to applications lodged from 1 July 2026. Some of the biggest increases include: Visa Category & Description Subclass Previous Fee (AUD) New Fee (AUD) Increase (AUD) Increase (%) Student and Student Guardian visas 500, 590 $2,000 $2,500 $500 25.0% Skilled Migration visas 189, 190, 491, 494 $4,910 $6,135 $1,225 25.0% Temporary Graduate visa 485 $2,300 $5,750 $3,450 150.0% Partner visas 309, 100, 820, 801 $9,365 $11,710 $2,345 25.0% Employer-sponsored SID visa 482 $3,210 $4,015 $805 25.1% Employer Nomination Scheme visas 186, 187 $4,910 $6,140 $1,230 25.1% The offshore Visitor visa (Subclass 600) application fee has also increased from $200 to $250, while the onshore Visitor visa and Citizenship by Conferral application fees remain unchanged. The updated fees apply only to visa applications submitted on or after 1 July 2026. Source : Visaenvoy Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. Sri Lanka is currently experiencing El Niño conditions, with weather officials warning that the country could face a mix of extreme weather over the coming months, including reduced rainfall, floods and possible drought. The Department of Meteorology says there is a 63% chance of a strong El Niño and a 33% chance of a weaker event. Officials expect below-average rainfall in August, followed by increased rain during October and November, which could raise the risk of flooding in some areas. Early next year, conditions may turn much drier, with drought likely to affect water supplies, agriculture and other key sectors. The potential impacts of El Niño were discussed at a special government meeting chaired by Environment Minister Dammika Patabendi. The committee, appointed by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, is preparing short-, medium- and long-term plans to strengthen food security, water management and energy conservation. Government agencies have been asked to submit action plans within two weeks, while the Department of Meteorology will remain the official source for all public updates on El Niño. Source : Daily Mirror News More updates to come on AusNewsLanka.

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. A tropical low near the Solomon Islands could become a rare winter cyclone this weekend, according to Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology. The Bureau says there is a low chance of cyclone formation between late Friday and Monday, with the risk peaking at around 10% from Saturday to Monday before dropping again. Even if the system does not strengthen into a cyclone, it is expected to bring heavy rain and strong winds to parts of the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. Forecasters do not expect any direct impact on mainland Australia. Cyclones in the Australian region are most common between November and April, making any July cyclone highly unusual. Records dating back to 1970 show only four regional cyclones have occurred in July, and some were identified only after later analysis. If this system reaches cyclone strength, it would be among the rarest winter cyclone events recorded in the region. Source : 9 News Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.