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OctOber 1 (GMt) – OctOber 2 (AeSt), 2018

AUSTRALIA + NEW ZEALANDUKNORTH AMERICA

US, Canada reach trade deal

The US and Canada reached the basis of a free trade deal, a senior Canadian government official said. The agreement preserved a NAFTA dispute-resolution process that the US wanted to jettison, the official said ahead of an official announcement. The official was not authorised to speak publicly and requested anonymity.

China calls off talks with US

China has cancelled a security meeting with US Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis that had been planned for October, a senior US official says. This comes days after a top Chinese official said there was no reason to panic over tensions between the two countries. The official, who is involved in China policy and spoke on condition of anonymity, said it was not clear if or when the meeting would be rescheduled.

PM to ‘lock in’ GST changes

New laws guaranteeing Western Australia’s GST share stays above 75 cents in the dollar will go through parliament within weeks. Prime Minister Scott Morrison made the pledge as he kicked off a three-day visit to WA, matching a recent commitment made by Opposition leader Bill Shorten to enshrine the GST floor in law.

Raab warns of Brexit limits

Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab has insisted that the Government is ready to take Britain out of the EU without a deal if necessary, warning Brussels: “Our willingness to compromise is not without limits.” His tough message, to be made in a speech to the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham, comes after Jeremy Corbyn warned a no-deal Brexit would be a “national disaster”.

Aldi plans store expansion

Aldi has confirmed plans to open 130 new stores in the UK over the next two years after sales hit a record high in 2017. The German grocer said the move will create 5000 jobs, while helping it move towards a previously set target of 1000 stores by 2022. The network will be supported by plans for three warehouses, as well as the extension of existing distribution centres.

Mine to be purged of gas

Another important step to re-entering the Pike River Mine has been achieved, with the arrival of equipment that is needed to purge the mine of explosive methane. The nitrogen gas plant needed to purge the mine has arrived at the site on the West Coast. Once the methane has been removed, the nitrogen will be pumped out, allowing a recovery team to enter the main entry tunnel without the need for breathing equipment.

YOUR dAilY TOP 12 STORieS fROM FRANK NEWS

fUll STORieS START On PAGe 3

2

OctOber 1 (GMt) – OctOber 2 (AeSt), 2018

AUSTRALIA + NEW ZEALANDREST OF THE WORLDASIA

‘Many challenges’ after tsunami

The need for heavy equipment to dig for survivors of the disaster that struck a central Indonesian island three days ago grows desperate. The toll of more than 800 dead is largely from the city of Palu and is expected to rise as areas cut off by the damage are reached. The magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck and spawned a tsunami said to have been as high as six meters (20 feet) in places.

S Korea begins removing mines

Seoul says South Korea has begun clearing mines from two sites inside the heavily fortified border with north Korea under a package of tension-reduction deal between the rivals. Seoul’s defense Ministry says North Korea is expected to do the same. Ministry officials say South Korean troops entered the Demilitarized Zone to remove mines around the border village of Panmunjom and another frontline area.

Aussie military in China Sea

All three arms of Australia’s military will be involved in two weeks of international security exercises in the South China Sea starting this week. Australia strongly supports “freedom of navigation” conventions in the contested area, after China recently militarised their man-made islands in the important trading channel. Militaries from five countries will paticipate in Bersama Lima 18, which runs from October 2 to 19.

Iran launches missiles into Syria

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said it had launched ballistic missiles into eastern Syria targeting militants it blamed for a recent attack on a military parade. State television and the state-run IRNA news agency said the attacks “killed and wounded” militants in Syria, without elaborating. Syrian state media did not acknowledge the strike. State TV aired footage of one of its reporters standing by as one of the missiles launched.

At least seven dead in prison riot

At least seven people have been shot dead and four wounded in a prison riot in Guatemala, according to local authorities, who say they have regained control. The riot spun out of a brawl among prisoners in the Pavoncito maximum security prison, said prison spokesman Rudy esquivel. Volunteer firefighters reported that four people were transferred to hospital and at least seven inmates died from bullet wounds.

Plans for chicken farm blocked

Tegel’s plan to build a mega farm in Northland has been fried by the Overseas investment Office (OiO). The poultry giant has confirmed the OiO turned down its bid to buy 200 hectares of former dairy land at Arapohue, near dargaville. Tegel proposed to build 32 poultry sheds to raise nine million birds per year – which would have made it the biggest chicken farm in the country.

YOUR dAilY TOP 12 STORieS fROM FRANK NEWS

fUll STORieS START On PAGe 6

3

OctOber 1 (GMt) – OctOber 2 (AeSt), 2018

NORTH AMERICA

US Secretary of defence Jim Mattis. - AP

China calls off security talks with US, MattisChina has cancelled a security meeting with US Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis that had been planned for October, a senior US official says.

This comes days after a top Chinese official said there was no reason to panic over tensions between the two countries.

The official, who is involved in China policy and spoke on condition of anonymity, said it was not clear if or when the meeting would be rescheduled.

The official said it was not clear whether the cancellation was because of the broad range of disputes between Beijing and Washington on issues such as arms sales and military activity in the South China Sea and other waters around China.

China and the United States are also locked in a spiraling trade war that has seen them level increasingly severe rounds of tariffs on each other’s imports.

“The tension is escalating, and that could prove to be dangerous to both sides,” the official said.

The US State department declined comment. Officials at the White House and department of defence did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

China’s Foreign and Defence Ministries also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Sources in Beijing briefed on the matter said last week the security meeting may not take place because of the tensions in relations between the two countries.

The Chinese government’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, said there was “no cause for panic” over friction between Beijing and Washington, but warned that China would not be blackmailed or yield to pressure over trade.

At a Un Security Council meeting, President donald Trump accused Beijing of seeking to meddle in the november 6 US congressional elections to stop him and his Republican Party from doing well because of his China trade policies.

Trump provided no evidence for his allegation. At the same meeting, Wang rejected the charge. ■

US President donald Trump. - AP

NORTH AMERICA

US, Canada reach trade agreementThe US and Canada reached the basis of a free trade deal, a senior Canadian government official said.

The agreement preserved a NAFTA dispute-resolution process that the US wanted to jettison, the official said ahead of an official announcement. The official was not authorised to speak publicly and requested anonymity.

The agreement also exempts tariffs on 2.6 million cars. On dairy Canada essentially gave the US the same access it offered in the Trans Pacific Partnership trade agreement that President donald Trump rejected.

The US and Canada were under pressure to reach a deal, as the US must make public the full text of the agreement with Mexico.

Canada, the United States’ no. 2 trading partner, was left out when the US and Mexico reached an agreement last month to revamp the north American free Trade Agreement.

The Trump administration officially notified Congress of the US-Mexico trade agreement on August 31. That started a 90-day clock that would let outgoing Mexican President enrique Pena nieto sign the new pact before he leaves office december 1.

Mexico’s economics ministry said that the text of the pact would be delivered to the Mexican Senate, adding that “if there is agreement with Canada, the text will be trilateral. if there is not, it will be bilateral.”

Trump had said he wanted to go ahead with a revamped nAfTA – with or without Canada. it was unclear, however, whether Trump had authority from Congress to pursue a revamped NAFTA with only Mexico, and some lawmakers said they wouldn’t go along with a deal that left out Canada.

US-Canada talks bogged down earlier this month, and most trade analysts expected the September 30 deadline to come and go without Canada being reinstated.

They suspected that Canada, which had said it wasn’t bound by US deadlines, was delaying the talks until after provincial elections in Quebec. ■

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OctOber 1 (GMt) – OctOber 2 (AeSt), 2018

UK

- AP

Aldi plans further store expansionsAldi has confirmed plans to open 130 new stores in the UK over the next two years after sales hit a record high in 2017.

The German grocer said the move will create 5000 jobs, while helping it move towards a previously set target of 1000 stores by 2022.

The network will be supported by plans for three warehouses in Sheppey in Kent, Sawley in Derbyshire and Bedford, as well as the extension of existing distribution centres in darlington and Bathgate in West lothian.

The store expansion announcement came as Aldi revealed that sales grew 16.4 per cent across the UK and ireland to a record £10.2 billion in 2017.

full-year operating profit rose 26 per cent to £265.9 million.Giles Hurley, chief executive of Aldi UK and ireland, said the

supermarket’s investment signalled its “continued commitment to growing responsibly in the UK”.

“That means having a positive and lasting impact on the economies where we operate and improving the lives of British people,” he added.

“in 2020, Aldi will have been serving British shoppers for 30 years. in that time, we’ve become part of the fabric of British life.

“We’re proud to be reaffirming our commitment today.”The grocer also outlined plans to boost its range of British

suppliers, who already account for its core range of meat, eggs, milk butter and fresh meat.

Aldi said it currently spends more than £100 million each week with more than 1000 local suppliers.

The discounter is now Britain’s fifth largest supermarket with 775 stores, having attracted a further 1.1 million shoppers last year.

it now accounts for 7.6 per cent of all UK grocery store spending, according to Kantar Worldpanel data. ■

Brexit minister dominic Raab. - ePA

UK

Raab warns Brussels of Brexit limitsBrexit Secretary Dominic Raab has insisted that the Government is ready to take Britain out of the EU without a deal if necessary, warning Brussels: “Our willingness to compromise is not without limits.”

His tough message, to be made in a speech to the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham, comes after Jeremy Corbyn warned a no-deal Brexit would be a “national disaster”.

in an offer to the Prime Minister, the labour leader said his party would back her if she struck a deal including a customs union, preservation of workplace and environmental regulations and no hard border in ireland.

But Raab will use his speech to rule out any deal which “locks in” Britain to the eU by membership of a customs union or the european economic Area.

He will reject the european Commission’s proposal for a “backstop” solution to the irish border issue under which northern ireland would remain part of the eU customs area.

Theresa May hinted that she was ready to contemplate further concessions on her Chequers plan for future relations with europe, telling the BBC she wanted to “sit down” with the eU and discuss its concerns.

After European Council president Donald Tusk said bluntly at this month’s Salzburg summit that Chequers “will not work”, May said that the onus is on Brussels to explain its objections in detail and offer counter-proposals.

She said: “My mood is to listen to what the EU have to say about their concerns and to sit down and talk them through with them.”

fabian Picardo, the chief minister of Gibraltar, has said May should stick to the Chequers plan, urging her to channel “nelson, Churchill and the heroes of the falklands War”.

He said: “Gibraltar has always been there for the British people.

“Now Britain is there for us, making sure that the good things we had from the eU are not lost.” ■

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OctOber 1 (GMt) – OctOber 2 (AeSt), 2018

AUSTRALIA + NEW ZEALAND

A truck containing equipment to purge Pike River of explosive gas. - RnZ / Supplied

Mine to be purged of explosive gasAnother important step to re-entering the Pike River Mine has been achieved, with the arrival of equipment that is needed to purge the mine of explosive methane.

The nitrogen gas plant needed to purge the mine has arrived at the site on the West Coast.

Once the methane has been removed, the nitrogen will be pumped out, allowing a recovery team to enter the main entry tunnel in fresh air without the need for breathing equipment.

The plant – which was used in the immediate aftermath of the 2010 mine explosion in which 29 men died – arrived in several containers from Australia.

it will be on the site for one year.A final decision on whether to enter the mine will be

made by the Pike River Recovery Minister Andrew little in early november. ■

Prime Minister Scott Morrison. - AAP

AUSTRALIA + NEW ZEALAND

Morrison to ‘lock in’ GST changesNew laws guaranteeing Western Australia’s GST share stays above 75 cents in the dollar will go through parliament within weeks.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison made the pledge as he kicked off a three-day visit to WA, matching a recent commitment made by Opposition leader Bill Shorten to enshrine the GST floor in law.

“Our GST plan is about assuring a fairer share to ensure the important services, for schools, for hospitals, for law enforcement,” he said.

The prime minister has given Shorten the draft legislation which seeks to enshrine the 75 cents floor, changes to the formula and a transition period.

Morrison said the proposal is expected to be introduced when parliament reconvenes in a fortnight.

State and territory finance ministers will also discuss the draft laws when they meet later this week.

The existing GST system has a lag effect, which meant WA’s share plunged to a record low of 29.99c for every dollar collected after the mining boom.

it has since increased to 34c for every GST dollar collected, while the government also gave the state $1.4 billion in top-up payments.

WA premier Mark McGowan hopes the announcement isn’t a stunt.

“All those details, we’d like them locked into law,” he said.“We don’t want this just to be an exercise for vision purposes

or to be something that is for show. We want it to be real.”The proposal looks certain to sail through parliament with

Labor’s support after Shorten said in August that his party would support a unity ticket with the coalition.

“i wouldn’t see any reason why we wouldn’t support it,” labor MP Anne Aly said.

Morrison said he expected Shorten to vote for the government’s plan. ■

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OctOber 1 (GMt) – OctOber 2 (AeSt), 2018

ASIA

South Korea has begun removing mines around the border village of Panmunjom. - AP

South Korea begins removing mines Seoul says South Korea has begun clearing mines from two sites inside the heavily fortified border with North Korea under a package of tension-reduction deal between the rivals.

Seoul’s Defense Ministry says North Korea is expected to do the same.

Ministry officials say South Korean troops entered the Demilitarized Zone to remove mines around the border village of Panmunjom and another frontline area where they plan their first joint searches with north Korea for soldiers during the 1950-53 Korean War.

The Koreas’ militaries agreed on a range of deals aimed at lowering their decades-long military animosities on the sidelines of a summit between their leaders in Pyongyang.

The move comes amid renewed international diplomacy on north Korea’s nuclear program. ■

damage from the tsunami and earthquake in the city of Palu, indonesia. - AP

ASIA

‘Many challenges’ after deadly tsunamiThe need for heavy equipment to dig for survivors of the disaster that struck a central Indonesian island three days ago grows desperate.

The toll of more than 800 dead is largely from the city of Palu and is expected to rise as areas cut off by the damage are reached. The magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck and spawned a tsunami said to have been as high as six meters (20 feet) in places.

Military and commercial aircraft were delivering some aid and supplies to the region. But there was a desperate need for heavy equipment to reach possible survivors buried in collapsed buildings, including an eight-story hotel in Palu where voices were heard in the rubble.

A 25-year-old woman was found alive Sunday evening in the ruins of the Roa-Roa Hotel, according to the national Search and Rescue Agency, which released photos of the her lying on a stretcher covered in a blanket.

At least 832 people were confirmed dead, indonesia’s disaster agency said, with nearly all of those from Palu. The regencies of donggala, Sigi and Parigi Moutong – with a combined population of 1.2 million – had yet to be fully assessed.

“The death toll is believed to be still increasing, since many bodies were still under the wreckage, while many have not been reached,” said disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo nugroho.

“We are trying our best. Time is so important here to save people,” said Muhammad Syaugi, head of the national search and rescue team. “Heavy equipment is on the way.”

indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo toured Palu and said rescuers were having difficulty reaching victims because of a shortage of heavy equipment.

“There are many challenges,” Jokowi said. “We have to do many things soon, but conditions do not allow us to do so.”

He said authorities were deploying more heavy machinery so emergency workers can help recover more victims.

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OctOber 1 (GMt) – OctOber 2 (AeSt), 2018

REST OF THE WORLD

- AAP

At least seven dead in Guatemala prison riotAt least seven people have been shot dead and four wounded in a prison riot in Guatemala, according to local authorities, who say they have regained control.

The riot spun out of a brawl among prisoners in the Pavoncito maximum security prison, said prison spokesman Rudy esquivel.

Volunteer firefighters reported that four people were transferred to hospital and at least seven inmates died from bullet wounds, according to local newspaper, Prensa libre.

“The incident happened in an area of isolation. no guard was injured or deceased,” esquivel said.

Authorities have since retaken control, he added.At least 12 inmates died in a riot in July 2013 at the same

prison, in the town of Fraijanes, about 12 miles from the Guatemalan capital.

The reason for the fight and the names of the victims was not immediately known. ■

Revolutionary Guard members display iran’s missiles during a military parade. - AP

REST OF THE WORLD

Iran launches missiles over ‘parade attack’Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said it had launched ballistic missiles into eastern Syria targeting militants it blamed for a recent attack on a military parade.

State television and the state-run IRNA news agency said the attacks “killed and wounded” militants in Syria, without elaborating. Syrian state media did not acknowledge the strike.

State TV aired footage of one of its reporters standing by as one of the missiles launched, identifying the area as being in iran’s western province of Kermanshah.

A state TV-aired graphic suggested the missiles flew over central Iraq near the city of Tikrit before landing near the city of Abu Kamal, in the far south-east of Syria.

Abu Kamal is held by forces loyal to Syria’s embattled president Bashar Assad. However, the city has been targeted even now by militants from the extremist Islamic State group, who have lost almost all the territory they once held in Syria and iraq.

The attack adds to confusion over who carried out an assault on a military parade in Ahvaz on September 22 that killed at least 24 people and wounded more than 60.

Iran initially blamed Arab separatists for the attack in which gunmen disguised as soldiers opened fire on the crowd and officials watching the parade from a riser in the south-western city.

Arab separatists also immediately claimed the attack and offered details about one of the attackers that ultimately turned out to be true.

The Islamic State group also claimed responsibility for the assault, but initially made factual incorrect claims about it. Later, IS released footage of several men that Iran ultimately identified as attackers, though the men in the footage never pledged allegiance to the extremist group.

In announcing the attack, Iranian state media said the missiles targeted both “takfiri” militants – a term it often applies to the islamic State group – and Ahvazi separatists. ■

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OctOber 1 (GMt) – OctOber 2 (AeSt), 2018

Plans for NZ’s largest chicken farm blockedTegel’s plan to build a mega farm in Northland has been fried by the Overseas Investment Office (OIO).

The poultry giant has confirmed the OiO turned down its bid to buy 200 hectares of former dairy land at Arapohue, near dargaville.

Tegel proposed to build 32 poultry sheds to raise nine million birds per year – which would have made it the biggest chicken farm in the country.

Tegel spokesperson Liam Baldwin said the company was disappointed at the outcome, which would have created 34 jobs.

Baldwin said the development was to be large-scale, efficient and environmentally friendly, and would have been a significant step for chicken farming.

The local community widely opposed the farm, citing concerns around noise, smell, pollution and effects on property values in the small rural community. ■

AUSTRALIA + NEW ZEALAND

A Tegel chicken farm in Helensville. - RnZ / Jessie Chiang.

Australian military in South China SeaAll three arms of Australia’s military will be involved in two weeks of international security exercises in the South China Sea starting this week.

Australia strongly supports “freedom of navigation” conventions in the contested area, after China recently militarised their man-made islands in the important trading channel.

Militaries from Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom will participate in Bersama Lima 18, which runs from October 2 to 19.

“This exercise will include a field training element, live fire serials as well as a command post exercise that will test the operability of Australian maritime, land and air elements,” Group Captain nicholas Pratt said.

“These activities will extend the partner nations’ knowledge of each other’s tactics and operational procedures.”

The five nations are part of the five Power defence Arrangements, which was established in 1971.

Australia will send nine Hornet fighters, four other aircraft, two naval ships and a platoon of Australian Army soldiers from Rifle Company Butterworth.

The South China Sea is subject to competing territorial claims from Asian nations, but Australia has repeatedly said it should stay open to vessels from all countries. ■

Two Royal Australian Air force C-130J Hercules aircraft. - AAP

AUSTRALIA + NEW ZEALAND