At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Melbourne Airport will open a new $500 million Pick Up and Drop Off hub in October, designed to reduce congestion and improve passenger access. The new T123 Transport Hub will more than double the airport’s current pickup and drop-off capacity, replacing the existing roads that have struggled to handle decades of passenger growth. Located within the T123 multi-level car park, the new facili

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. City of Moreton Bay will trial Australia’s first artificial intelligence-powered traffic light system, aiming to reduce delays and improve traffic flow. The new technology will use AI to monitor individual vehicle movements and adjust traffic signals in real time, replacing traditional systems that rely on fixed light sequences and road sensors. Mayor Peter Flannery said the system could re

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 ලංකාවේ ක්‍රිප්ටෝ මුදල් (Crypto currencies) නීත්‍යානුකූල ගෙවීම් මාධ්‍යයක් ලෙස පිළිගෙන නොමැති වුවද, ක්‍රිප්ටෝ මුදල් ගනුදෙනු සහ ඒ ආශ්‍රිත ක්‍රියාකාරකම්වලින් උපයන ආදායම දේශීය ආදායම් දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව විසින් "වෙනත් ආදායම්" ලෙස සලකා බදු අය කිරීමට යටත් වන බව මුදල් හා ක්‍රමසම්පාදන නියෝජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය අනිල් ජයන්ත ප්‍රනාන්දු මහතා පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේදී ප්‍රකාශ කළ

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. A new survey has found that more than half of Australians are using less heating this winter to keep electricity bills under control. Research by Canstar shows many households are also choosing cheaper electric heaters, even though lower-priced models can cost more to run over time. Experts say simple, no-cost steps such as wearing warmer clothing, closing doors and windows, and blocking dr

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. International Monetary Fund has lowered its forecast for Australia’s economic growth, warning that momentum is slowing. The IMF expects Australia’s real GDP to grow 1.9% in 2026, slightly below its previous forecast, and 1.7% in 2027. This is well below Australia’s long-term average growth rate of more than 3%. The global growth outlook was also revised down, with the IMF forecasting the wo

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Sri Lankan community informed with timely updates. More than 1.7 million Sri Lankans are currently employed overseas, according to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment Arun Hemachandra. Speaking in Parliament, the Deputy Minister said Sri Lankan migrant workers sent home USD 8.2 billion in remittances during 2025, making a significant contribution to the country's economy. He praised the overseas workforce for their con

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. The Global Passport Index 2026 has ranked passports based on more than just visa-free travel, evaluating countries across mobility, investment opportunities and quality of life. Sweden claimed the top spot with the highest overall score, followed by Switzerland, Finland, Germany and the Netherlands. Australia ranked 28th, reflecting its strong per

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 asse

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

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 investigation

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 s

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

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 c

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

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

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

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

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 expec

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 hea

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australian footwear retailer Betts has entered administration and will shut more than half of its stores as it shifts toward an online-first model. The company, founded in Western Australia over 130 years ago, currently operates 35 stores nationwide. Around 20 stores will close, including major locations across SA, NT, NSW, Victoria, Queensland, and WA. At its peak, Betts had more than 200