Chess world championship starts

DEFENDING champion Viswanathan Anand has held Norwegian challenger Magnus Carlsen to a quick draw with the black pieces in the first game of their chess world championship match.

Playing in Chennai on Saturday close to where Anand was born, the 43-year-old Indian grandmaster forced Carlsen to repeat a position by chasing his opponent's queen back and forth with a knight, leading to an automatic draw after just 16 moves.

That gives Anand a slight early advantage, as he now gets the white pieces in six of the remaining 11 games.

The 22-year-old Carlsen is the biggest star in chess and the game's top-ranked player, but this is his first world championship match. Anand has held the world title since 2007 and has defended it against three previous opponents.

Hospital cuts to hit kids

EXCLUSIVE: EMERGENCY helicopter cases will have to bypass the new Monash Children's Hospital after the State Government cut plans for a helipad.

Typhoon death toll rises to 1200

WITH the death toll from Super Typhoon Haiyan rising to 1200 in the Philippines, neighbouring Vietnam is bracing itself for the storm's next landfall.

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Young Aussies are most stressed out: study

AUSTRALIAN employees are suffering high levels of stress, a survey reveals.

That's not surprising. Australians overall report declining wellbeing and increasing stress, according to a state-of-the-nation survey commissioned by the Australian Psychological Society (APS).

They also have more depression and anxiety symptoms than those revealed in the 2011 and 2012 surveys.

Younger people are the most stressed and people older than 66 are coping the best, according to the online survey of 1548 people, 999 of whom are employed.

Workplace issues include a lack of feedback, unclear expectations and not feeling valued.

Employees report significantly lower levels of job satisfaction and lower levels of interest in their job compared with previous years.

Hospital cuts to hit kids

EXCLUSIVE: EMERGENCY helicopter cases will have to bypass the new Monash Children's Hospital after the State Government cut plans for a helipad.

Typhoon death toll rises to 1200

WITH the death toll from Super Typhoon Haiyan rising to 1200 in the Philippines, neighbouring Vietnam is bracing itself for the storm's next landfall.

While most employees feel physical injuries are taken seriously, only 50 per cent feel supported with mental health issues, according to the survey, released to coincide with national psychology week.

Women feel more supported by their managers than men.

This could be because men do not seek support and try to cope on their own, APS executive director Professor Lyn Littlefield says.

"Feedback should be regular and should be both formal and informal. Not just once a year at a performance review," she said.

Prof Littlefield says temporary stress can be a useful motivator, but when stress reaches a certain level it becomes problematic and people become dysfunctional.

If it continues too long it can lead to depression and anxiety.

Stress-management techniques and making changes to things that are within a person's control can help, Prof Littlefield says.

The worst thing to do is to attempt to manage it with alcohol or drugs.

"People do try to self medicate, but that does not ever solve the problem," she said.

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Germans commemorate Kristallnacht

GERMANS across the country have commemorated the 75th anniversary of Kristallnacht - the night of broken glass - during which the Nazis staged a wave of attacks on Jews in Germany and Austria.

On November 9, 1938, hundreds of synagogues were burned, numerous homes and Jewish-owned stores were ransacked, some 1000 people were killed and more than 30,000 Jews were sent to concentration camps.

The attacks marked the beginning of the state-organised, violent persecution of Jews which ended in the murder of six million European Jews by the end of the Third Reich in 1945.

Germans in many cities and towns held candle-light vigils, listened to Jewish survivors share memories and met at Jewish cemeteries to remember the victims of Kristallnacht during Saturday's commemorations.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the night of broken glass "was an event that humiliated Jews in an unbelievable way ... a real low point in German history had been reached."

Hospital cuts to hit kids

EXCLUSIVE: EMERGENCY helicopter cases will have to bypass the new Monash Children's Hospital after the State Government cut plans for a helipad.

Typhoon death toll rises to 1200

WITH the death toll from Super Typhoon Haiyan rising to 1200 in the Philippines, neighbouring Vietnam is bracing itself for the storm's next landfall.

She added, "Unfortunately, later on German history developed in an even more dramatic way which eventually ended in the Shoah" - or Holocaust. The chancellor also called on Germans to never forget the past.

Across Berlin, guided groups of residents walked through their neighbourhoods, noting sites where Jewish stores, schools and other locations once stood before being destroyed by the Nazis and their supporters.

Several Berliners came together to polish some of the city's 5000 Stolpersteine, or stumbling blocks, which identify by name individual victims of Nazis in front of their former homes.

The cobblestone-sized brass plaques are inserted on sidewalks and called stumbling blocks because one unexpectedly trips over them -figuratively speaking - while strolling through the city.

"We have organised 16 groups who are out today cleaning the stumbling blocks and we are hoping to turn this into an annual event in the future," said the coordinator of the tours, Silvija Kavcic.

Despite the many positive activities, some speakers sounded a note of caution, reminding their listeners that anti-Semitism is still a problem in Europe.

A poll of European Jews released on Friday found that more than three-quarters of those questioned believe anti-Semitism is surging in their home countries and close to one-third have considered emigrating because they don't feel safe.

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Jetski rider dies after Gold Coast crash

Hospital cuts to hit kids

EXCLUSIVE: EMERGENCY helicopter cases will have to bypass the new Monash Children's Hospital after the State Government cut plans for a helipad.

Victory fan stabbed in brawl

A MELBOURNE Victory fan is believed to have been stabbed in a wild brawl after tonight's match against Sydney FC in Sydney tonight.

How Fev lost his fortune

HE was once footy's most bankable star but bankruptcy documents reveal how Brendan Fevola has blown a fortune.

Therapy puts dad in touch again

BEING able to cradle his baby daughter, Adele, in his arms was a precious gift that Damian Zammit thought he would never get to experience.

Facing her outback nightmare

CRIME FEATURE: JOANNE Lees failed to meet public expectations as a distraught heroine, but the key witness in one of Australia's biggest murder trials delivered a performance of a lifetime.

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Poison ruled out in Chilean poet's death

FORENSIC experts who examined the remains of Chilean poet Pablo Neruda have found no evidence he was poisoned to death during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, an official says.

"No relevant chemical agents that could be linked to Mr Neruda's death were found," said Patricio Buso, director of Chile's forensic medicine service, on Friday.

The study confirmed that prostate cancer caused Neruda's death in 1973, shortly after the military coup that brought Pinochet to power.

The Nobel laureate's remains were exhumed in April and examined by a group of Chilean and foreign forensic experts after suspicions arose he may have been poisoned.

A former driver had claimed that Neruda was given a mysterious injection in his chest hours before his death in the Santiago clinic where he was being treated for advanced prostate cancer.

"Various complementary techniques confirmed the existence of metastatic lesions disseminated in various segments of the skeleton that correspond exactly with the disease for which Mr Pablo Neruda was being treated," Bustos said.

The analysis, which was conducted at universities in Spain and the United States, found "no forensic evidence at all that would permit us to establish a medico-legal etiology of non-natural causes in the death of Mr Pablo Neruda," he said.

An active member of the Communist Party, Neruda died on September 23, 1973 and was buried by the sea in Isla Negra, on Chile's Pacific coast.

Famed for his love poems, Neruda won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971.

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US jobs up 204,000 in October

US employers added 204,000 jobs in October, an unexpected burst of hiring during a month in which the federal government was partially shut down for 16 days.

The US Labour Department says the unemployment rate rose to 7.3 per cent from 7.2 per cent in September, likely because furloughed federal workers were counted as unemployed. The report noted that the shutdown did not affect total jobs.

Employers also added 60,000 more jobs in the previous two months than earlier estimated.

Employers added an average of 202,000 jobs from August through October, up from 146,000 from May through July.

The percentage of Americans working or looking for work fell to a fresh 35-year low. But that figure was likely distorted by the shutdown, too.

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Clergy inquiry to call for reporting laws

VICTORIA'S landmark inquiry into child sex abuse by clergy is expected to demand priests and religious leaders be forced into reporting abuse allegations against their colleagues or face jail themselves.

A final report from the state's parliamentary inquiry into institutional responses to child abuse is due to be released within days.

The inquiry's report will recommend the state government create a criminal offence "for ministers of religion who fail to report physical or sexual abuse of children by other clergy", News Corp Australia says.

Clergy who don't pass on abuse allegations they have heard within their organisations "should face jail", the report recommends, according to News Corp on Saturday.

Victoria's parliamentary committee heard evidence from dozens of victims, church leaders, police officers and other officials.

Mandatory reporting laws were suggested several times during a years' worth of public hearings.

The committee's final report is expected to be tabled in parliament by November 15.

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US consumer spending slows

US consumers slowed their spending in September, even as overall income grew at a solid pace for the second straight month.

The Commerce Department says consumer spending rose 0.2 per cent in September, after a 0.3 per cent gain the previous month.

Americans cut spending on long-lasting manufactured goods by 1.3 per cent. That partly reflected a drop in car sales.

Income rose 0.5 per cent in September, matching the August gain. The increases in both months were the strongest since February. September's gain was helped by the end of government furloughs, which had reduced federal pay in the previous two months.

The gain in income and the slowdown in spending meant consumers saved 4.9 per cent of their after-tax income, up from 4.7 per cent in August.

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British marine guilty of Afghan's murder

A ROYAL Marine has been convicted of murder following the execution in cold blood of an injured insurgent in Afghanistan.

A court martial board on Friday found the commando, known only as Marine A, guilty of murdering the man in Afghanistan's Helmand Province more than two years ago. Two others, known as Marines B and C, were acquitted.

The marines denied murdering the unknown captured Afghan national on or about September 15, 2011, contrary to Section 42 of the Armed Forces Act 2006.

But a seven-strong board, consisting of officers and non-commissioned officers, convicted one of the defendants following a two-week trial at the court martial centre in Bulford, Wiltshire.

Marine A shot the Afghan national in the chest at close range with a 9mm pistol before quoting a phrase from Shakespeare as the man convulsed and died in front of him.

"There you are. Shuffle off this mortal coil, you c***. It's nothing you wouldn't do to us," Marine A told the insurgent.

He then turned to comrades and said: "Obviously this doesn't go anywhere, fellas. I just broke the Geneva Convention."

The execution was filmed by a camera mounted on the helmet of Marine B.

Marines B and C were alleged to have been "party to the killing" and "encouraged and assisted" Marine A in committing the murder but they were cleared.

Judge Advocate General Jeff Blackett told Marine A the mandatory sentence prescribed by law was imprisonment for life and he was ordering a report prepared to determine the minimum term he would serve.

"In the meantime, I direct that you are to be taken into custody."

Addressing the other two defendants, the judge added: "Marine B and Marine C, you have been found not guilty of murder and you are now free to return to your normal place of duties.

He said the issue of whether to continue name suppression for the marines would be decided at a later date.

Brigadier Bill Dunham, Deputy Commandant General Royal Marines, said the murder was "a truly shocking and appalling aberration".

In a Ministry of Defence statement he said the naval service respected the verdict and took seriously its responsibilities to train its sailors and marines in the standards of conduct applicable to combat operations.

"It is a matter of profound regret in this isolated incident that one marine failed to apply his training and discharge his responsibilities.

"What we have heard over the last two weeks is not consistent with the ethos, values and standards of the Royal Marines. It was a truly shocking and appalling aberration. It should not have happened and it should never happen again," Brigadier Dunham said.

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US unemployment benefit applications fall

THE number of people seeking US unemployment benefits fell 9,000 to a seasonally adjusted 336,000 last week, bringing applications to pre-recession levels.

The Labor Department said on Thursday that the less volatile four-week average dropped 9,250 to 348,250.

The average was elevated by the 16-day partial government shutdown and backlogs in California that occurred because of computer upgrades.

Weekly applications have fallen for four straight weeks. Applications are a proxy for layoffs.

The decline suggests companies are cutting very few workers.

Still, they are not hiring many new ones.

Falling applications are typically followed by more job gains, but hiring has slowed in recent months, rather than accelerated.

The economy added an average 143,000 jobs a month from July through September. That's down from an average of 182,000 in April through June, and 207,000 during the first three months of the year.

October's jobs report, to be released on Friday, likely will look even weaker.

Economists expect that employers added just 122,000 jobs, and the unemployment rate rose to 7.3 per cent, according to FactSet.

But much of the weakness in October's jobs report will likely reflect the temporary impact of the shutdown.

Most economists expect any spike in the jobless rate will be reversed in November.

The economy was strengthening ahead of the shutdown, the government said on Thursday in a separate report.

Growth accelerated at a 2.8 per cent annual rate in the July-September quarter, up from a 2.5 per cent rate in the April-June quarter.

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On-the-run terror suspect suing Britain

A TERRORISM suspect who escaped British surveillance by disguising himself in a burka is suing the government over alleged torture, it's been revealed.

Mohammed Ahmed Mohamed evaded police surveillance last week by changing his Western-style clothes for a burka while he was visiting a mosque in London.

British counterterrorism police and secret services have launched a major search for the 27-year-old, who is believed to have fought abroad for al-Shabaab, the militant Somali rebel group.

His case for damages from the British government emerged at the High Court on Thursday, when a judge handed down an interim ruling in his case and his anonymity was lifted due to his disappearance.

Before he went on the run, Mohamed and another man had filed a claim against the Foreign Office, Home Office, Ministry of Defence and the Attorney General, alleging they had consented or acquiesced to their detention and torture by Somaliland authorities in January 2011.

British "officers and agents ... by their acts and omissions, procured, induced, encouraged or directly caused, or were otherwise complicit in" the detention of Mohamed and his co-claimant, the court papers said.

The judge in the case said that both were British citizens of Somali descent.

Mohamed had travelled to Somaliland in 2007 and was returned to Britain in March 2011, after his arrest and alleged torture.

British Home Secretary Theresa May had applied for a control order against him prior to his detention in Somaliland, Mohamed said, showing that May knew he was about to be detained.

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Bank of England keeps rates unchanged

THE Bank of England has decided to keep its key interest rate at a record low of 0.5 per cent as it monitors the economy's strengthening recovery.

The Monetary Policy Committee also voted on Thursday to refrain from pumping more money into the economy. The bank has so far pumped STG375 billion ($A636.83 billion) into the economy since January 2009.

The decision had been widely expected because of the bank's new "forward guidance" policy, which new Governor Mark Carney introduced this summer.

The guidance offers markets, individuals and businesses a clear steer on where interest rates will be in coming months.

Carney has indicated rates will remain low until unemployment - currently at 7.7 per cent - drops significantly to a 7 per cent threshold.

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Controversial health website launched

PRIVATE health fund nib has launched a controversial website that allows patients to rate the cost and service levels of health practitioners.

The searchable Whitecoat website is open to all Australians and lists 30,000 "extras" providers such as optometrists, dentists and chiropractors.

"Whitecoat represents a new way of connecting consumers and providers," says the fund's Rhod McKensey.

It is particularly useful for people who have moved to a new area or need a treatment for the first time.

The 13,000 comments featured so far have been collected from clients over the past 12 months and are 90 per cent positive, he says.

The fund says it has consulted widely to overcome issues and providers will be able to opt out of the ratings and comments.

But some health organisations are concerned the ratings system will be unfair and that the site breaks advertising guidelines.

The Australian Dental Association has advised members not to participate at all.

"We can't see the benefit," says vice president Dr Carmelo Bonanno.

Cost comparisons are difficult because treatments might appear the same but might involve different materials and different degrees of difficulty, he says.

"We also have concerns about breaching advertising guidelines for dentists."

The Dietitians Association of Australia is advising its members to opt out of the rating and comments section.

"A directory showing people what's available in their area is fantastic," says spokesperson Kate Di Prima, and accredited practising dietician.

But she is concerned the ratings system will reflect the subjective view of a single person and there are too many variables for valid price comparisons.

"A consumer-driven health profession that embraces choices is the future," says Chiropractors' Association of Australia CEO Andrew McNamara.

He is concerned, however, that the site complies with health profession guidelines.

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Sven lover 'sold story for STG300,000'

FORMER England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson's mistress received STG300,000 ($A509,000) to sell her story to two Sunday newspapers, a UK jury has been told.

Faria Alam, 47, began an affair with Eriksson while working as a secretary at the FA and the Old Bailey has heard "first details" emerged when the News of the World hacked their phones.

After she was fired because of the relationship in September 2004, publicist Max Clifford cut a deal for the News of the World (NotW) and Mail on Sunday to give her STG150,000 each for her side of the story, the court heard.

In a statement read out in court, Alam said Eriksson started pursuing her shortly after she joined the FA in April 2003.

The affair began after he took her on dinner dates and then lunch in a private dining room in London, the court heard on Thursday.

"I was impressed - I would say in the office I was going for longer lunches. I'm not sure if they knew I was going with Sven," she said.

The court heard that Alam's phone was hacked by private investigator Glenn Mulcaire on behalf of the NotW in June 2004.

After returning that month from Euro 2004 with the England team, Eriksson told his lover that there were reporters who knew about the relationship and Alam "freaked out".

In an attempt to avoid publicity, the pair flew out to Eriksson's native Sweden, but when they arrived at his home there were reporters waiting, forcing them to stay indoors all weekend.

The story of their relationship appeared in the NotW on July 18, 2004, but Ms Alam was not named and a picture of her outside her flat in south east London did not show her face.

When the news broke, Eriksson asked her "How do you want to deal with the situation?" and she said: "I will deny it."

Despite her denials, she was fired from her job as PA to then-chief executive of the FA David Davies in September 2004 but remained in contact with Eriksson for months afterwards.

Mulcaire has already admitted phone hacking.

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Aussie woman remains in care in Ireland

AN Australian woman found in Ireland confused and virtually unable to communicate could be at risk if she's released from care, an Irish court has been told.

The 25-year-old, described as vulnerable, had been in the country for three weeks before being found on Dublin's O'Connell Street - the Irish capital's main shopping thoroughfare - in a distressed state.

She had been in Ireland visiting a relative before going missing.

She was found on October 10 by police on routine patrol.

Her identity remained a mystery as she appeared to have very few words of English since being taken into care and drew some pictures to communicate.

A High Court hearing to decide how she should be cared for has been told she has a history of psychiatric issues.

The court heard a non-direct relation, who has lived with someone directly related to the woman, identified her after a photograph was circulated through media worldwide.

She had stayed with the man before her disappearance.

It was initially thought the girl was aged only 14 or 15 and European.

A consultant paediatric psychiatrist who assessed the woman told the court he believed she was vulnerable and staff were liaising with adult services.

Contact between authorities in Ireland and Australia has also indicated the woman has a history of psychiatric issues.

A breakthrough in finding the woman's identity came on Tuesday night, less than 10 hours after a photograph of the woman was released.

Sergeant David Gallagher, of Store Street Garda Station, said it came as a direct result of the picture being released yesterday and circulated worldwide.

"She's an Australian national and has lived there at a number of addresses," he said.

The Australian Federal Police confirmed it received a request for assistance from Irish authorities through Interpol.

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Environmental crime cost world billions

OFFICIALS from Interpol and the United Nations Environmental Program are teaming up to combat environmental crime such as the killing of elephants and the theft of timber.

Achim Steiner, the UN Environmental Program's executive director, says some 500 experts from around the world are meeting in Nairobi this week to try to arrest "a rapidly escalating environmental crime wave".

The groups say internationally co-ordinated enforcement efforts must be stepped up to prevent wildlife and timber cartels from escaping law enforcement efforts by shifting operations from one region to another.

UNEP says that global syndicates behind the poaching of animals, the illegal shipping of toxic waste and the cutting down of the world's forests steal tens of billions of dollars from communities around the world every year.

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Raffaele Sollecito back in court in Italy

RAFFAELE Sollecito, the former Italian boyfriend of US student Amanda Knox, has pleaded his innocence before a court, insisting he's been the victim of a "big mistake".

Sollecito and Knox are suspected of murdering British student Meredit Kercher, six years ago. They were found guilty in a first ruling in 2009 and acquitted on appeal two years later, but that verdict was invalidated in March and a retrial was ordered.

"These accusations against me ... against us, are absurd," Sollecito said on Wednesday.

"I humbly ask you to look at the reality of all this story and to consider the big mistake that was made and to give me the possibility ... to have a life, because at the moment I do not have a real life," he added.

It was the first time the 29-year-old appeared in court since the new appeal trial started in Florence, central Italy, on September 30.

He made a spontaneous declaration, meaning that he was not subjected to cross-questioning.

At the end of his remarks, Sollecito almost broke into tears.

The courtroom was packed, with people in the public gallery forced to stand. Many took out their mobile phones to photograph Sollecito, who did not speak to journalists.

Knox, who is back in her home town of Seattle, has declined to return to Italy for the trial.

The Florence appeals court could deliver its verdict on January 10, Italian media reports say, based on the latest schedule for hearings announced by presiding judge Alessandro Nencini.

In case of a conviction, Knox and Sollecito would still be able to file another appeal, and if eventually confirmed guilty, Knox would not go to prison unless US authorities agreed to extradite her.

Kercher died aged 21. She was found on November 2, 2007, half-naked and with multiple stab wounds, in the apartment she was sharing with Knox in the central Italian university town of Perugia, along with two other female students.

At the time, Sollecito was "one week away" from graduating in computer studies and was experiencing "his first true love story" with Knox, he said in court.

Wednesday's hearing also discussed forensic tests from the presumed murder weapon, a kitchen knife that was seized from Sollecito's flat. Police found DNA traces attributable to Knox, but not to Sollecito or Kercher.

Giulia Buongiorno, a lawyer for Sollecito, insisted that the DNA results pointed to the innocence of the defendants. She said it was normal for the knife to have traces of Knox, since she likely used it while cooking at her former boyfriend's.

Forensic tests on the knife also ruled out a DNA match with Rudy Guede, the only person in the case who has so far been proven guilty.

In 2010, he was jailed for 16 years for murder and sexual assault, but in their ruling judges concluded that he did not act alone.

Guede, who was born in the Ivory Coast but was raised in Italy, was convicted after a bloodied fingerprint on Kercher's pillow was found to be his. There were also traces of his DNA on the victim's body and the toilet paper in the bathroom.

Sollecito said he never met Guede, and dismissed as absurd suggestions that Kercher was killed following a "racy group sex game", as suggested by Italy's top appeal court when it ordered a retrial.

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Damascus bombing kills eight

A BOMB has exploded in a central district of Damascus, killing at least eight people.

Official news agency SANA says the bomb detonated at the entrance of a building near central Hijaz square at midday on Wednesday.

Eight people were killed and at least 50 were wounded in the blast, it added.

It quoted unmanned officials as blaming "terrorists" for the attack, a term used by President Bashar al-Assad's government to refer to the rebels fighting to overthrow him.

In a similar incident southeast of the capital, state-run Al Ikhbariya TV said an explosion went off in the city of Sweidah, causing a number of casualties. It did not give a number. If confirmed, it would be the first attack targeting a predominantly Druse city.

Syria's civil war has taken increasingly sectarian overtones in the past year as predominantly Sunni Muslim rebels fight a government dominated largely by Alawites, a sect of Shi'ite Islam to which Assad belongs. Syria's Christians have been targeted in previous attacks because Sunni rebels perceive them as siding with Assad.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Wednesday's attacks.

Rebels fighting to topple Assad have frequently targeted Damascus with bombs.

Armed opposition fighters tied to al-Qaeda have previously claimed bombings of government and security institutions in the capital and beyond.

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BAE announces hundreds of shipyard cuts

BRITISH defence contractor BAE Systems has announced plans to cut some 1775 jobs at three shipyards, ending the building of warships in England for the first time in hundreds of years.

BAE told unions it was starting the legal process to stop shipbuilding at a yard in Portsmouth in England and eliminate jobs at Govan and Scotstoun in Scotland once work is completed on two aircraft carriers in 2015.

The cuts will have political ramifications ahead of a Scottish independence vote in 2014.

Critics charge Scottish shipyards got preferential treatment at the expense of the English one to prevent independence leader Alex Salmond from arguing that Scotland was punished for seeking independence.

Gerald Vernon-Jackson, a local government leader in Portsmouth, told the BBC on Wednesday that closing the Portsmouth shipyard raised the prospect that no advanced warships would be built in England - potentially forcing Britain to turn to France or Germany for ships.

Ships have been built in Portsmouth for hundreds of years, since Britain first became a naval power.

"We're an island nation," said Gerald Vernon-Jackson, a local government leader.

"We depend on sea trade for the food we eat, for the fuel in our cars, for the gas in our central heating systems, and the Royal Navy has never bought ships from abroad."

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No more cash rate cuts expected

THE board of the Reserve Bank of Australia is not expected to cut the cash rate when it meets on Tuesday.

Eight out of 12 economists surveyed by AAP say the RBA will not cut the cash rate in the foreseeable future, and all of the those surveyed predict there won't be a Melbourne Cup Day reduction.

HSBC chief economist Paul Bloxham says improved business and consumer confidence, as well as strong rises in house prices, means the RBA has finished its rate cutting cycle.

"The RBA is unlikely to deliver any more rate cuts for fear of over inflating the housing market," he said.

"Housing price growth has risen and timely auction market data suggest these trends have continued in recent weekends, despite a pickup in supply on the market.

The RBA has slashed the cash rate by two per cent to a record low of 2.5 per cent in a series of reductions over the past two years.

Most economists believe the RBA will start increase its interest rate in late 2014 or early 2015.

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Backlash over spying claims grows

More than 170 Australian websites were hacked by Anonymous Indonesia to protest reports of spying. Source: AAP

INDONESIA has threatened to withdraw cooperation with Australia on various policy fronts, including in the area of people smuggling, amid a growing backlash over revelations of spying out of the Australian embassy in Jakarta.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa on Monday labelled Australia's response to complaints that the embassy was used to collect data and eavesdrop on Indonesian interests as unacceptable.

Dr Natalegawa said Indonesia was joining Germany and Brazil in co-sponsoring a resolution at the United Nations General Assembly that calls for measures to end violations of the right to privacy, including in digital communications and to force countries to respect their obligations within the framework of international human rights laws.

The spying row started off between the US and its European allies but last week erupted in Asia after Fairfax newspapers reported there was a network of US intelligence facilities in the region.

The papers, amplifying an earlier story by German magazine Der Spiegel, said Australian missions were also involved in the US-led spying network.

On Sunday, the Guardian newspaper reported Australia and the US mounted a joint surveillance operation on Indonesia during the 2007 UN climate change conference in Bali, citing a document from US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden.

"Enough is enough," Dr Natalegawa, who had sought an explanation from his Australian counterpart Julie Bishop during a meeting in Perth on Friday, told reporters in Jakarta on Monday.

"The recent revelations will have a potentially damaging impact in terms of the trust and confidence between countries concerned," he said.

Dr Natalegawa said that in the absence of any "explicit assurances" that the spying would stop, various agreements between Canberra and Jakarta on a range of policies would be reviewed.

"We have to review our co-operation, our information exchange with the two countries concerned, both the US and Australia, because if they did gather information out of the official framework, the question is what is the use of the official framework," he said.

"This is something we need to carefully think about and we have explained to them that we cannot accept this kind of thing and we demand that it wont be repeated in the future.

"One of them obviously is the agreement to exchange information, exchange even intelligence information, in fact, to address the issue of people smuggling ... to disrupt terrorism, etc. Now these information flows have been rather effective, have been rather important. We need to look at that."

Dr Natalegawa said he was not satisfied by explanations given by Ms Bishop, or Australia's ambassador to Indonesia Greg Moriarty who was summoned to the Indonesian Foreign Ministry on Friday.

"The kind of response that we've been obtaining or receiving is the more generic response that neither the government of Australia nor the United States is able to confirm or deny the practices reported in the various media," Dr Natalegawa said.

Last week, Dr Natalegawa also called in the US embassy's charge d'affaires to protest over reports that the Americans had conducted electronic surveillance and phone-tapping from their Jakarta embassy.

It's been claimed that Australian surveillance collection facilities are in place at embassies in Jakarta, Bangkok, Hanoi, Beijing and Dili, and high commissions in Kuala Lumpur and Port Moresby.

The top secret Defence Signals Directorate operates the listening posts at embassies without the knowledge of most Australian diplomats, according to documents released by US whistleblower Edward Snowden and statements from a former Australian intelligence officer.

The documents revealed the existence of a signals intelligence collection program - codenamed STATEROOM - conducted from sites at US embassies and consulates and from the diplomatic missions of other intelligence partners including Australia, Britain and Canada.

The documents say the Australian Defence Signals Directorate operates STATEROOM facilities "at Australian diplomatic facilities".

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Kellogg to cut jobs, lowers outlook

KELLOGG will trim its global workforce by seven per cent as part of a cost-cutting plan, with the cereal maker citing weaker-than-expected sales for the year.

The maker of Frosted Flakes and Eggo waffles says it expects earnings per share for the year to be towards the lower end of its previous forecast.

The workforce reductions will take place by 2017.

For the quarter, Kellogg Co says it earned $US326 million ($A346 million), or 90 cents per share. Not including one-time items, it earned 95 cents per share, which was above the 89 cents per share Wall Street expected.

A year ago, the company earned $US318 million, or 89 cents per share.

Revenue slipped to $US3.72 billion and was short of the $US3.73 billion analysts expected.

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Shots fired in Sydney road rage incident

SHOTS have been fired in a residential street in southwest Sydney in a road rage incident.

The argument, between the driver of a Ford sedan and a Toyota Hatchback, happened in the Riverwood area about 10.30pm (AEDT) on Monday.

A woman driving the Ford then entered Iris Street at Riverwood, where she parked her car, but the Toyota, being driven by a man, also turned into the street.

A man came out of a house and approached the Toyota, which drove off.

But it returned minutes later, at which time several shots were fired in the vicinity of the Ford, before it left the scene.

Police discovered a hole in the Ford's door panel and a crime scene has been established.

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Girl shot in back in latest NSW shooting

A 13-YEAR-OLD girl has been shot in the back in what police say is a targeted attack at a home in Sydney's west.

Three men, one armed with a shotgun, arrived at a home on Sunnyholt Road at Blacktown about 11pm (AEDT) on Monday and had a brief argument at the front door before the man inside closed the door on them.

As the three men left the property, several shots were fired into the home, one of which hit a 13-year-old girl in the back, police say.

She was taken to Westmead Hospital, where she is in a stable condition.

A woman and her two sons who were also home at the time were not injured.

Meanwhile, police say shots were fired at a three-storey townhouse in Blaxell Street in Granville on Sunday night, but the incident was not discovered by police until Monday afternoon, when they went to the house for an unrelated matter.

A crime scene was established and a number of items were seized for forensic examination.

Police have conducted a canvass of the neighbourhood and are now appealing for information.

The shootings are the latest in a spate of gun attacks during the last two weeks.

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Rural cancer more likely to kill: study

RURAL cancer patients are more likely to die than those in urban areas, according to a study published in the Medical Journal of Australia.

Although the overall risk of cancer death decreased by one per cent from 2001 to 2010, the study shows the decrease was almost twice as high in metropolitan areas compared with rural and regional areas.

Some of the biggest disparities are for melanoma and cancers of the lung, prostate, oesophagus and colon.

The authors, led by Dr Michael Coory of the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, suggest a lack of investment in strategic planning is part of the reason.

They say enough is known about the causes to start evaluating possible solutions.

These include more accommodation support for patients who need to travel to metropolitan centres, virtual multidisciplinary teams and fly-in, fly-out services.

The authors point out, however, that research to guide service planning and budget decisions is not as prestigious as laboratory and clinical research for treatments and cures.

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Indians mark Diwali with fireworks

MILLIONS of Indians have begun setting off deafening fireworks displays to light up the sky for Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights, which celebrates the triumph of good over evil.

People across India also handed out sweets, exchanged greetings with friends and relatives, and adorned their homes with glowing lanterns and oil lamps as they celebrated the country's most important festival of the year.

Diwali marks the return home of the Hindu god Rama from a 14-year exile after killing the demon Ravana, who had abducted his wife, Sita, according to the ancient Hindu epic Ramayana.

A near-constant stream of fireworks and firecrackers lasting until midnight is expected to leave a dark, smoggy cloud lingering for days - a matter of concern for environmentalists.

Mindful of the pollution and the dangers of the deafening displays, authorities pushed this year to cut down on the number of fireworks, and some schools sent notices home urging parents not to buy any.

The state-run Central Pollution Control Board says it will be monitoring the air quality and noise levels on Sunday night at a dozen locations in New Delhi, India's capital.

SK Tyagi, a senior scientist at the pollution control board, says the noise level at last year's Diwali festival was down from 2011, due mainly to the use of less noisy fireworks.

India's economic downturn appears to have impacted this year's celebrations.

People typically buy gold during Diwali, including jewellery, coins and small statues of the elephant-headed Hindu god Ganesh. But the government has imposed a steep new tax on gold imports, making the already high prices far out of reach for many Indians.

Diwali also is celebrated by Hindus in other parts of the world, including Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal and Malaysia.

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