Rod McGuirk

Associated Press

Protesters rally outside the Rio Tinto office after the destruction of Australian Indigenous sacred sites in Perth.

Rio Tinto CEO Leaves

The mining giant concluded there was "no single root cause or error that directly resulted in the destruction of the rock shelters."

In this Feb. 26, 2015, file photo, a Qantas 737 plane maneuvers behind another 737 parked at a gate at Sydney Airport in Sydney. Qantas on Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2019, said it had found cracking in one 737, following calls from the US Federal Aviation Administration for all airlines to check their fleets of the aircraft.

3 Boeing 737s Grounded Over Cracks

The hairline crack was found in one of eight bolts in the so-called pickle fork assembly in each of the three planes.

Pork 5d8253eb72f3e

Woman Deported Over Smuggled Pork

Countries remain fearful of the African Swine Fever plaquing much of Asia.

This Jan. 12, 2019, photo captured by a Mobile Phone Detection Camera and released by Transport for NSW shows a driver using a mobile phone while driving in Australia. Australian state New South Wales is attempting to persuade the public to put down their smartphones while driving by rolling out cameras to prosecute distracted motorists. New South Wales Roads Minister Andrew Constance said on Monday, Sept. 23, 2019, Australia’s most populous state was the first jurisdiction in the world to use such technology to punish drivers distracted by social media, text messages or phone calls. The government intends to roll out 45 Mobile Phone Detection Cameras across the state by December, he said.

New Technology Can Catch Drivers on Phones

Road safety experts are alarmed at the growing prevalence of accidents involving drivers using smartphones.

VW to Pay Up To $87M For Scandal

The exact amount will depend on how many owners of the affected 100,000 Volkswagen, Audi and Skoda diesel vehicles join the class action.

Empty shelves, normally stocked with strawberry punnets, are seen at a Coles Supermarket in Brisbane. Public fears about sewing needles concealed inside strawberries on supermarket shelves have spread across Australia and New Zealand as growers turn to metal detectors and the Australian government launches an investigation to restore confidence in the popular fruit.

Needle-in-Strawberry Scare Spreads

Sewing needles concealed inside strawberries on supermarket shelves have spread across Australia and New Zealand.

In this May 24, 2018, photo, Jiang Hui whose mother was on board the missing Malaysia airplane MH370 speaks to journalist about Texas-based company Ocean Infinity's search in Beijing, China. Australia said Tuesday that it was holding out hope that Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 would one day be found, as the last search by Ocean Infinity of the seabed in the remote Indian Ocean where the plane was believed to have been lost was scheduled to end Tuesday.

Co. Hopes to Search Again After MH370 Fail

Ocean Infinity said the search would soon end after covering more than 143,000 square miles of remote ocean floor.

In this May 23, 2013 file photo, a banner is displayed at a Ford dealership in Sydney. Ford Motor Co.’s Australian subsidiary was fined 10 million Australian dollars ($7.6 million) by an Australian court on Thursday, April 26, 2018, for mishandling customer complaints about faulty automatic transmissions in thousands of cars.

Ford Fined for Mishandling Complaints

The Federal Court ordered the $10 million penalty for "unconscionable conduct."

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Chairman Rod Sims talks about a compulsory recall order of 2.7 million cars fitted with defective Takata air bags, in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2018. Australia issued a compulsory recall for cars fitted with defective air bags in an effort to lift the auto industry's mixed efforts to fix the fault blamed for multiple deaths around the world.

Australia Makes Takata Recall Mandatory

It's an effort to lift the auto industry's mixed efforts to fix the fault blamed for at least 23 deaths around the world.

Australia Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull walks in front of military trucks during a visit to Thales Underwater Systems in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 29, 2018. The government announced a new strategy to boost Australia into the ranks of the top 10 defense industry exporting countries within a decade through arms sales to liked-minded nations and with safeguards to keep weapons out of the hands of rogue regimes.

Australia Focuses on Defense Exports

The push to increase Australian defense manufacturing jobs came after General Motors Co. in October became the last automaker to quit building Australian cars.

In this Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018 image made from a video provided by Westpac Little Ripper, a yellow flotation device is dropped from a flying drone toward two teenagers caught in a riptide in heavy seas off the Australian coast. A flying drone has dropped the flotation device to the pair in what officials describe as a world-first rescue. They were about a kilometer (0.6 mile) from lifeguards who were about to start training with the new drones, equipped with a camera, rescue gear and six rotors.

World's First Drone Rescue Saves Two Teens

The kids were caught in a riptide.

In this Oct. 15, 2017, historic Holden cars parade through the streets of Adelaide, Australia. The Australian auto manufacturing era ends after more than 90 years on Friday, Oct. 20, 2017 when General Motors Co.'s last Holden sedan rolls off the production line in the industrial city of Adelaide. The nation has already begun mourning the demise of a home-grown industry in an increasing crowded and changing global car market.

Out of the Car Making Business

The country's final automotive plant is closing, and 900 people are out of a job.