A deal getting the fragile truce in the US-China trade war back on track is done, US President Donald Trump says after negotiators from the United States and China agreed on a framework covering tariff rates.

The deal also removes Chinese export restrictions on rare earth minerals and allows Chinese students access to US universities.

Trump took to his social media platform to offer some of the first details to emerge from two days of marathon talks held in London that had, in the words of US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, put “meat on the bones” of an agreement reached last month in Geneva to ease bilateral retaliatory tariffs that had reached crushing triple-digit levels.

“Our deal with China is done, subject to final approval with President Xi (Jinping) and me,” Trump said on the Truth Social platform.

“Full magnets, and any necessary rare earths, will be supplied, up front, by China. Likewise, we will provide to China what was agreed to, including Chinese students using our colleges and universities (which has always been good with me!). We are getting a total of 55 per cent tariffs, China is getting 10 per cent.”

A White House official said the 55 per cent represents the sum of a baseline 10 per cent “reciprocal” tariff Trump has imposed on goods imported from nearly all US trading partners; 20 per cent on all Chinese imports because of punitive measures Trump has imposed on China, Mexico and Canada associated with his accusation that the three facilitate the flow of the opioid fentanyl into the US; and finally pre-existing 25 per cent levies on imports from China that were put in place during Trump’s first term in the White House.

Lutnick said the 55 per cent rate for Chinese imports is now fixed and unalterable.

Asked on Wednesday on CNBC if the tariff levels on China would not change, he said: “You can definitely say that.”

Still, many specifics of the deal and details for how it would be implemented remain unclear.

Officials from the two superpowers had gathered at a rushed meeting in London starting on Monday following a call last week between Trump and Chinese leader Xi that broke a stand-off that had developed just weeks after a preliminary deal reached in Geneva that had defused their trade row.

The Geneva deal had faltered over China’s continued curbs on critical minerals exports, prompting the Trump administration to respond with export controls preventing shipments of semiconductor design software, aircraft and other goods to China.

Lutnick said the agreement reached in London would remove restrictions on Chinese exports of rare earth minerals and magnets and some of the recent US export restrictions “in a balanced way” but did not provide details after the talks concluded around midnight London time.

“We have reached a framework to implement the Geneva consensus and the call between the two presidents,” Lutnick said, adding that both sides will now return to present the framework to their respective presidents for approvals.

“And if that is approved, we will then implement the framework,” he said.

In a separate briefing, China’s Vice Commerce Minister Li Chenggang also said a trade framework had been reached in principle that would be taken back to US and Chinese leaders.

The US government is reportedly reviewing the AUKUS trilateral defence agreement between Australia, the UK and the US.

The decision to conduct a review has been reported by multiple news outlets including Reuters, which cited US defence officials without giving further details.

The review will reportedly examine whether the pact is in line with US President Donald Trump’s ‘America First’ policy, according to the ABC which also cited a Pentagon source.

AUKUS is a three-nation security alliance between Australia, the UK and the US agreed in 2021 under the prime ministership of ex-Liberal leader Scott Morrison.

It was formed to counter China’s strategic moves in the Pacific arena and was underpinned by an agreement between the US and the UK to provide Australia with access to nuclear-powered submarine technology, to eventually replace its aging Collins-class boats.

The deal is worth hundreds of billions of dollars, although the first submarine is not expected to join the Australian fleet for years.

Australia, which in February made the first of six $US500 million (about $800 million) payments to the US for the boats, is expected to initially buy between three and five off-the-shelf Virginia-class boats.

At the time, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Mr Trump was supportive of the AUKUS deal.

“The president is very aware, supportive of AUKUS,” Mr Hegseth said after a meeting with Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles.

“(He) recognises the importance of the defence industrial base.”

Mr Marles responded that the pair had discussed how the US and Australia could advance their longstanding diplomatic relationship in terms of national security, including AUKUS.

Australia’s military budget is expected to rise to 2.3 per cent of gross domestic product, or output, by 2034.

The US regime has already called for Australia to increase that spending to around 3.5 per cent.

Australia tore up its $90 billion diesel-powered submarine deal with France to sign on to AUKUS and is contracted to buy several off-the-shelf submarines costing about $US4 billion each, before making its own.

The first Australian-made boats are not due to be operational until the 2040s.

Aussie music lovers feel a sense of pride when they hear Australian music, but their playlists are actually dominated by pop from the US and Britain.

While 71 per cent of listeners love to hear Australian tunes, and two thirds want to hear more, only one in three music fans make an effort to seek out new Australian music.

It’s a big contradiction revealed in landmark research by Music Australia, the federal government’s music development and funding body.

A massive 98 per cent of local listeners discover musicians via streaming, but more than half (51 per cent) don’t think about whether an artist is Australian when they are looking for new tunes.

Of the top 10,000 artists streamed in Australia during 2024, just eight per cent were Australian, while more than half were from the US, according to entertainment analytics firm Luminate.

It seems the sheer convenience of personalised playlists delivered via an algorithm might be stopping music fans discovering Australian artists – and that’s a problem for musicians like Sara Storer.

The ARIA-award winning country musician is releasing her eighth solo album titled Worth Your Love, and says the music industry has completely transformed since her first release back in 2001.

“For a young person, especially a young Aussie artist trying to get out there, I’d be terrified. Where do you start?” she said.

Despite building an inter-generational audience over decades, the Darwin-based musician can no longer rely on album sales, and even solid streaming figures don’t add up to a viable income.

“There’s no income from streaming. It looks good on paper and you think, well, I should be making a few bucks, but you don’t see anything,” said Storer. 

“All my money is made through live performance. I rely heavily on ticket sales, which is like a roller coaster.”

The contradiction between listener sentiment and behaviour could be the basis of a campaign for actively discovering local music – a bit like the ‘Life. Be in it’ health campaign of the 1980s – suggested Music Australia director Millie Millgate.

“We can remind Australian audiences what these bands are doing overseas and encourage them not to miss out – like, don’t miss out on your own party,” said Millgate.

“There’s no one single bullet, but if audiences can be mobilised to do their part and really seek out Australian new music, it would go an incredible way.”

And the Music Australia research suggests we could potentially Aussify Spotify: listeners like the idea of a dedicated Australian music streamer, with 42 per cent saying it’s something they would pay for.

Melbourne rock band Amyl and the Sniffers are one act making it big on the global stage, and when the band appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon recently, singer Amy Taylor’s top was made from two classic Aussie thongs.

It’s a big effort to demonstrate a sense of national pride – but it seems many Aussie musos are actually getting more love overseas, with more than 80 per cent of royalties for local musicians coming from international listeners in 2024, according to figures from Spotify.

The research also found radio still plays a role. A quarter of music fans still tune in to discover new music, with ABC station triple j a popular source.

An economic snapshot of the local sector showing a direct contribution of almost $3 billion to the national economy was part of three industry research reports released on Thursday.

The sanctioning of two Israeli ministers signals Australia will be more assertive in pushing for a two-state solution in the Middle East, an expert says.

The federal government applied sanctions against Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in a co-ordinated move with allies Canada, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom.

The sanctions were applied for “extremist violence and serious abuses of Palestinian human rights”, with the pair barred from travelling to Australia and any assets in the country being frozen.

The measures prompted condemnation from the US with Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying it would do little to achieve a ceasefire in the conflict.

But Middle East politics professor at Deakin University Shahram Akbarzadeh said the sanctions were a consequential step.

“It is significant and it sends a signal that Australia is becoming more resolute in pursuing its foreign policy agenda of a two-state solution,” he told AAP.

“Australia would not have done this on its own, but when Australia sees other allied countries taking this move, that allows Australia to feel comfortable in numbers.”

Israel’s ambassador to Australia Amir Maimon said the sanctions were concerning and unacceptable.

“These ministers are part of a government that operates under the principle of collective responsibility, making such measures unreasonable,” he said in a statement.

“The Israeli government will convene early next week to consider and determine our official response to these actions.”

Prof Akbarzadeh said the sanctions imposed by the western allies would not alter how Israel would conduct itself in the conflict.

“Israel has shown it does not take international opinion seriously, and this move is unlikely to deter the Israeli government in the way they’re prosecuting the war in Gaza,” he said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese doubled down on the need for the sanctions, despite the reaction from Israel and the US.

“Sometimes friends have to be clear with each other,” he told reporters in Sydney.

“We support Israel’s right to live and to exist in secure borders, but we also support the legitimate aspirations of Palestinians.”

Israel’s violence in Gaza restarted after Hamas, a designated terrorist organisation, invaded the nation and killed about 1200 people and abducted 250 others on October 7, 2023.

Israel’s bombardment, aid blockages and military action in Gaza has killed more than 40,000 people and left many more on the brink of starvation.

Australia in July also sanctioned Israelis involved in attacking and killing Palestinians in the West Bank.

Billionaire businessman Elon Musk says he regrets some of the posts he made last week about US President Donald Trump as they had gone “too far,” a gesture that Trump described as “very nice,” in the latest sign of a tentative reconciliation between the two men.

Trump said on Saturday his relationship with Musk was over after they exchanged criticism on social media, with the Tesla and SpaceX CEO describing the president’s sweeping tax and spending bill as a “disgusting abomination”.

Musk has since deleted some posts critical of Trump, including one signalling support for impeaching the president.

Sources close to the world’s richest man say his anger has started to subside and that he may want to repair the relationship.

Company and market analysts suggested Musk’s tone could reflect a desire to protect his businesses.

“I regret some of my posts about President Donald Trump last week. They went too far,” Musk wrote in a post on his social media platform X on Wednesday, without saying which specific posts he was talking about.

After Musk’s comments, Trump told the New York Post: “I thought it was very nice that he did that.”

Tesla shares rose 1.7 per cent.

“The conciliatory tone from Musk recently might indicate his desire to protect his businesses in the light of the position he has found himself in,” said Mamta Valechha, consumer discretionary analyst at Tesla investor Quilter Cheviot.

Tesla shareholder Matthew Britzman, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said both Musk and Trump appeared to have de-escalated the situation.

“It still feels unlikely that we’ll see these two giant personalities so closely intertwined again but it’s in neither’s best interest to let the drama continue,” he said.

Shawn Campbell, adviser and investor at Camelthorn Investments, said the relationship between Musk and Trump could be restored but also said it was unlikely it would return to where it once was.

“The stakes between the richest man in the world and leader of the most powerful nation in the world are just so big, with billions of dollars of government contracts at stake, not to mention the power to investigate and regulate and tax,” said Campbell, who personally holds Tesla shares.

Musk bankrolled a large part of Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, spending nearly $US300 million ($A459 million) in last year’s US elections and taking credit for Republicans retaining a majority of seats in the House and retaking a majority in the Senate.

Trump then named him to head an effort to downsize the federal workforce and slash spending.

Musk left the role late last month after criticising Trump’s marquee tax bill, calling it too expensive and a measure that would undermine his work at the Department of Government Efficiency.

On Monday, Trump said he would not have a problem if Musk called and that he had no plans to discontinue the Starlink satellite internet provided to the White House by Musk’s SpaceX but might move his Tesla off-site.

“We had a good relationship, and I just wish him well,” Trump said.

Musk responded with a heart emoji to a video on X showing Trump’s remarks.

Tesla shares have recouped all the losses they suffered during the public feuding between Trump and Musk last Thursday, when more than $US150 billion was wiped off the company’s market value.

President Donald Trump has announced the US will get magnets and rare earth minerals from China under a new trade deal and that tariffs on Chinese goods will go to 55 per cent.

In return, Trump said on Wednesday the US will provide China “what was agreed to” including allowing Chinese students to attend American colleges and universities. 

Several global brands are among dozens of companies at risk of using forced labour through their Chinese supply chains because they use critical minerals or buy minerals-based products sourced from the far-western Xinjiang region of China, an international rights group said.

The report by the Netherlands-based Global Rights Compliance says companies including Avon, Walmart, Nescafe, Coca-Cola and paint supplier Sherwin-Williams may be linked to titanium sourced from Xinjiang, where rights groups allege the Chinese government runs coercive labour practices targeting predominantly Muslim Uyghurs and other Turkic minorities.

The report found 77 Chinese suppliers in the titanium, lithium, beryllium and magnesium industries operating in Xinjiang. It said the suppliers are at risk of participating in the Chinese government’s “labor transfer programs”, in which Uyghurs are forced to work in factories as part of a long-standing campaign of assimilation and mass detention.

Commercial paints, thermos cups and components for the aerospace, auto and defence industries are among products sold internationally that can trace their supply chains to minerals from Xinjiang, the report said. It said companies must review their supply chains.

“Mineral mining and processing in (Xinjiang) rely in part on the state’s forced labor programs for Uyghurs and other Turkic people in the region,” the report said.

The report came as China and the US, the world’s two largest economies, said that they have agreed on a framework to get their trade negotiations back on track after a series of disputes that threatened to derail them.

The two sides on Tuesday wrapped up two days of talks in London that appeared to focus on finding a way to resolve disputes over mineral and technology exports that had shaken a fragile truce on trade reached in Geneva in May.

Asked about the report, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said “no one has ever been forcibly transferred in China’s Xinjiang under work programs”.

“The so-called allegation of forced labour in China’s Xinjiang region is nothing but a lie concocted by certain anti-China forces. We urge the relevant organisation to stop interfering in China’s internal affairs and undermining Xinjiang’s prosperity and stability under the guise of human rights,” ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.

The named companies didn’t immediately comment on the report.

A UN report from 2022 found China may have committed crimes against humanity in Xinjiang, where more than one million Uyghurs are estimated to have been arbitrarily detained as part of measures that the Chinese government said were intended to target terrorism and separatism.

The Chinese government has rejected the UN claims and defended its actions in Xinjiang as fighting terror and ensuring stability.

In 2021, then US President Joe Biden signed a law to block imports from the Xinjiang region unless businesses can prove the items were made without forced labor.

The law initially targeted solar products, tomatoes, cotton and apparel, but the US government recently added new sectors for enforcement, including aluminium and seafood.

Many of China’s major minerals corporations have invested in the exploration and mining of lithium, a key component for electric vehicle batteries, in Xinjiang, Global Rights Compliance said. Xinjiang is also China’s top source of beryllium, a mineral used for aerospace, defence and telecommunications, its report said.

A recent report by the International Energy Agency said that the world’s sources of critical minerals are increasingly concentrated in a few countries, notably China, which is also a leading refining and processing base for lithium, cobalt, graphite and other minerals.

An Islamist preacher has denied calling Jewish people “vile and treacherous” in controversial sermons to boost his online profile after attracting the ire of Hindus and Christians.

Sydney-based Al Madina Dawah Centre cleric Wissam Haddad has been accused of racial discrimination during a series of fiery sermons from November 2023, which have racked up thousands of views online. 

He was quizzed in the Federal Court on Wednesday about a 2022 lecture in which he said Christmas greetings were worse than congratulating someone for murder.

The preacher denied suggestions the speech was “highly offensive” and he delighted in the controversy by repeating it on his social media page.

Peter Braham SC, acting for two Jewish plaintiffs, made those accusations and suggested it was one example of how Mr Haddad previously sought to amplify his views. 

He pointed to Mr Haddad’s 2023 description of Jewish people as “descendants of pigs and monkeys” and Hindus as “worshippers of cows and monkeys”. 

In a post on social media in response to the backlash from the Hindu community, the preacher ate a beef burger and announced he “didn’t want to have a beef with anyone”. 

Mr Haddad, who is also known as Abu Ousayd, told the Federal Court he knew his initial comments caused offence but was demonstrating resilience in the face of threats. 

He rejected Mr Braham’s suggestions he revelled in the attention or that he was trying to become an online personality by making offensive remarks about other religious groups. 

“You were trying to attract attention by posting racist content online, weren’t you?” Mr Braham asked. 

“No,” the preacher responded. 

Mr Haddad denies breaching anti-discrimination laws and claims he was delivering historical and religious lectures on events from the Koran to contextualise the war in Gaza. 

He said he was speaking about “Jews of faith” rather than ethnicity while trying to explain “what the Israeli government is doing to the people of Gaza” is “not something new”.

The preacher said his description of Jews as a “vile people” was aimed at the actions of the Israeli government and the use of “treacherous” was a reference to events in the Koran. 

He likewise attributed his characterisations of Jewish people as “mischievous”, “murderous” and “rebellious” to Islamic texts. 

“I never set out to insult Jews,” Mr Haddad said. 

He told the court his speeches were intended for a small private Muslim audience rather than the broader community.

The preacher admitted he knew the allegedly anti-Semitic lectures were being recorded and they would be published online but said he was not responsible for uploading them. 

His lawyer argued the allegedly racist lectures had been selectively edited and would not have been seen by Jewish people if not reported on by the media. 

Yet Mr Braham said he would argue that “everything that happens at the Al Madina Dawah Centre is designed and calculated for public consumption and to create or attract controversy”. 

His clients, Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Peter Wertheim and deputy president Robert Goot, are suing Mr Haddad over the allegedly racist speeches. 

They want the published lectures – which they say are offensive and could incite violence towards Jews – taken down and Mr Haddad banned from making similar comments. 

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The latest searches in connection with the disappearance of Madeleine McCann concluded as planned, German prosecutors say.

Head prosecutor in Braunschweig, Hans Christian Wolters, said the co-operation between the Portuguese and German authorities during the operation was “very constructive”.

His words came after The Sun newspaper reported that samples had been taken from last week’s searches after claims that bones and clothing fibres were found.

The newspaper reported that the bones were initially deemed to be animal remains but have been retained by prosecutors to be forensically examined.

The latest hunt for evidence came 18 years after three-year-old Madeleine disappeared from the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz while on holiday with her family in 2007.

She was left sleeping by her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, and vanished as they went for dinner in a nearby restaurant.

Search teams concluded their operation in neighbouring Atalaia, near the city of Lagos, after three days of scouring scrubland and abandoned structures.

German prosecutors requested the search as part of their continued attempts to source evidence to implicate prime suspect Christian Brueckner.

He is in prison for raping a 72-year-old woman in Praia da Luz in 2005 and is due to be released from jail in September if no further charges are brought.

According to reports, Brueckner sent a letter to police saying “decisive questions can never be answered”.

Another letter shows the suspect telling Mr Wolters that “the investigation will be dropped”, The Sun reported.

In October 2024, he was cleared by a German court of unrelated sexual offences, alleged to have taken place in Portugal between 2000 and 2017.

An Islamist preacher being sued for referring to Jewish people as “treacherous” has previously stirred up controversy over Christmas greetings.

Sydney-based Al Madina Dawah Centre cleric Wissam Haddad has been accused of racial discrimination during a series of fiery sermons from November 2023, which have racked up thousands of views online. 

He was quizzed in the Federal Court on Wednesday on a 2022 lecture in which he said that Christmas greetings were worse than congratulating someone for murder. 

The preacher denied the speech was “highly offensive” and that he delighted in media controversy by repeating it on his social media page.

Peter Braham SC, acting for two Jewish plaintiffs, made those accusations and suggested it was one “highly offensive” example of how Mr Haddad previously sought to amplify his views. 

“Everything that happens at the Al Madina Dawah Centre is designed and calculated for public consumption and to create or attract controversy,” Mr Braham said. 

Mr Haddad’s barrister has argued the allegedly anti-Semitic speeches were intended for a small private Muslim audience and weren’t reasonably likely to attract the attention of the broader community. 

“That is absolutely not how this man has run his life,” Mr Braham said. 

Mr Haddad told the Federal Court he wasn’t responsible for uploading the allegedly racist videos to social media, but he knew they were being recorded and would be published online. 

He agreed that recordings of his lectures were likely to appear on YouTube, Rumble, Telegram and SoundCloud in 2023. 

His lawyer argued the allegedly racist lectures have been selectively edited and would not have been seen by Jewish people if not reported on by the media. 

But Mr Braham said the speeches did not need to be immediately witnessed by Jewish people to be viewed as threatening, humiliating and denigrating. 

Mr Haddad, who is also known as Abu Ousayd, denies breaching anti-discrimination laws and claims he was delivering historical and religious lectures on events from the Koran to contextualise the war in Gaza. 

He is being sued by Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Peter Wertheim and deputy president Robert Goot, who want the published speeches brought down and Mr Haddad banned from making similar comments. 

They claim the speeches are offensive and intimidating, and could normalise anti-Semitic prejudices or encourage violence towards Jewish people. 

“Making derogatory generalisations, calling Jews a vile and treacherous people, calling them rats and cowards … are things which I think would be experienced by most Jews as dehumanising,”  Mr Wertheim told the court on Tuesday.

The hearing continues. 

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The price of domestic airfares could come down as Qantas shuts its struggling intra-Asia carrier to cash in on strong demand for flights in Australia and New Zealand.

Some 500 Singapore-based Jetstar Asia workers will lose their jobs when the budget airline ceases flights on 16 routes from July 31.

There are no changes to Jetstar flights connecting Australia to destinations in Asia or Jetstar Japan services.

Jetstar Asia’s 13 Airbus A320 planes will replace older or leased aircraft in Australia and New Zealand, which the airline claims will create 100 new jobs.

The shift is a smart move and good news for domestic passengers who may benefit from newer aircraft and lower fares, Sydney University transport professor Rico Merkert says.

“More capacity added to the market has even more competition, say with Virgin or other domestic carriers,” Prof Merkert told AAP.

“Airfares should come down in Australia somewhat.”

Jetstar Asia is on track to make a $35 million loss by the end of the 2024/25 financial year, while Qantas Group recorded $1.5 billion in earnings in the last six months of 2024.

“Yields here in Australia and demand are very healthy. Qantas would be silly not to try and make use of that and deploy as much capacity as they can,” Prof Merkert said.

“It’s not easy to come by new aircraft at the moment, so even if they go to Airbus or Boeing, those aircraft wouldn’t become available before 2027, 2028 or something like that.

The fastest way of boosting capacity was redeploying aircraft from Asia, he said.

In a statement to the ASX, Qantas Group attributed Jetstar Asia’s closure to greater competition, rising supplier costs and high airport fees.

Qantas Group chief executive Vanessa Hudson said it was a “very tough day” for staff and the airline had made low-cost travel accessible to millions of customers over more than 20 years.

“We have seen some of Jetstar Asia’s supplier costs increase by up to 200 per cent, which has materially changed its costs base,” Ms Hudson said.

Qantas’s share price slid almost one per cent after the announcement.

Passengers with bookings for cancelled flights will be entitled to refunds or moved onto other flights.

The airline said Jetstar Asia employees were entitled to redundancy benefits and would be re-employed within Qantas where possible.

Australian Travel Industry Association chief executive Dean Long didn’t expect Jetstar Asia’s closure to affect many local customers.

“Primarily the markets where Australians are wanting to travel to, there’s already been direct connectivity so we actually haven’t had to use any of the subsidiary airlines,” Mr Long said.

Qantas owns 49 per cent of Jetstar Asia, while Singapore company Westbrook Investment is the majority owner.

The airline said the move would “unlock” up to $500 million in capital, which would be reinvested into its core businesses.

Ms Hudson said the airline was focusing on growth areas including ultra long-haul flights, under its “Project Sunrise” initiative, with the first plane capable of flying direct from Sydney to London and New York due to arrive in July.

Qantas is also launching new routes in the second half of 2025, including Adelaide to Auckland and Perth to Auckland and Johannesburg.

The price of Australian domestic economy airfares were 12 per cent cheaper in January and February 2025 than the same time in 2024, according to corporate travel advisers FCM Consulting.

That’s despite the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission warning the dominance of Qantas and Virgin had limited local market competition.

More flights between Australia and Europe will be unveiled in the second half of 2025 due to Virgin Australia’s new partnership with Qatar Airways, which the airlines claim will put downward pressure on international prices.