US beef prices highest since 1987

THE highest beef prices since 1987 are hitting the hip pockets of home cooks and restaurant owners in the US.

A dwindling number of cattle and growing export demand have tightened the supply and caused the average retail cost of fresh beef to climb to $US5.28 ($A5.63) a pound in February - 24 cents higher than January.

Prices likely will stay high for a couple of years as cattle producers start to rebuild their herds. Those in the in the southwest and midwest will need enough rain to replenish parched pastures.

Some shoppers are turning to chicken or pork, though those prices are on the rise as well.

Some independent restaurants have hiked their menu prices or switched to smaller steaks.

An economics professor says chain restaurants combat the price spike by buying in bulk.

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PM to end Asia trip with Forbidden City

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott will wrap up his first official visit to North Asia with a tour of the 600-year-old Forbidden City in China.

Mr Abbott on Saturday is expected to visit the imperial palace of China's ancient dynasties following a meeting with his business delegation in Beijing.

The high-powered business entourage, including top banking and corporate CEOs, will brief the prime minister about what's been achieved on the sidelines of his trade mission to North Asia.

The prime minister will also visit an Australian business that's just opened its doors in China, before later heading to the Forbidden City, one of Beijing's most famous landmarks.

Former prime minister Julia Gillard was given a private tour of the historic site in 2011, with thousands of tourists kept out until she had finished her exclusive visit.

Mr Abbott has been in North Asia for a week trying to shore up Australia's trade and security relationships with Japan, South Korea and China.

These Asian powerhouses are the top three destinations for Australian exports, and combined two-way trade is worth $250 billion a year.

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Kate to meet Mad Hatter, White Rabbit

KATE may be wondering if she's fallen down a rabbit hole when she finds herself in a magic-themed teepee with a mad hatter.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will jet to Hamilton on Saturday, where Kate will pop into Rainbow Place hospice, which provides care to kids experiencing grief, serious illness or the death of a loved one.

She'll attend the annual children's party which will be held inside a giant teepee, where party-goers will be greeted by Alice in Wonderland characters including the White Rabbit and Alice herself.

Kate's probably more used to canapes and fine dining, but she'll be treated to jellied eyeballs, huhu grubs, flower pots of sweet chocolate mud and crispy chicken lolly pops.

Meanwhile, Prince William will visit Pacific Aerospace aircraft factory.

Afterwards, the couple will be visiting a town that shares their name, Cambridge, becoming the first duke and duchess with the title to do so.

The royals will be shown around the town by Mayor Jim Mylchreest and his wife Robyn.

They'll also meet some locals, including Cynthia Read who was commissioned by the prime minister's office to knit a lace shawl which was given to Prince George when he was born.

Will and Kate will then open new national cycling centre Avantidrome.

The duke and duchess won't be visiting Waikato's resident royal - King Tuheitia Paki - who lives at the Turangawaewae marae in Ngaruawahia.

King Tuheitia said in March the 90 minutes he'd been allocated wasn't enough to do the royals justice.

Baby George will stay in Wellington with his nanny, and Will and Kate will fly back to be with him on Saturday evening.

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GM to invest $449M in 2 Detroit factories

US carmaker General Motors will invest $A485.96 million in two Detroit-area factories. Source: AAP

GENERAL Motors says it's investing $US449 million ($A485.96 million) in two Detroit-area factories to build the next generation Chevrolet Volt hybrid electric car.

The company says the investment eventually will bring a second shift at the Detroit assembly plant that makes the Volt and other cars.

But it wouldn't say how many jobs would be added or when the people would be hired.

The plant now employs about 1600 on a single shift.

GM says it will invest $384 million at the assembly plant and another $65 million in a battery pack plant in nearby Brownstown Township.

The company didn't release any details on the next generation Volt.

The current version can go about 38 miles on battery power before a small gasoline generator kicks in.

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Bob Carr reveals plane, lobbyist hassles

Former foreign minister Bob Carr is set to release a new book later this month. Source: AAP

FORMER foreign minister Bob Carr likes his breakfast oats steel-cut and his Wagner opera with English subtitles.

So, his latest book - Diary of a Foreign Minister - could well be subtitled First World Problems.

But he says the book is intentionally full of self-parody and irony because it's the stuff of life - and that's "too short to be taken seriously".

However, it's not all diet regimes and complaints about business class travel.

Mr Carr also reveals a "very unhealthy level" of influence the Israeli lobby had in Canberra, saying he decided to breach cabinet confidences because the public deserved to know what went on.

NewSouth Publishing describes the book - due to hit the shelves at the end of April - as the "best picture ever published of a politician on the world stage and Australia's changing place in the world and in our region".

But it is also expected to reveal Mr Carr's multi-faceted personality - eccentric, obsessive, passionate and self-deprecating.

The faults and foibles of air travel feature heavily, according to reports.

In the book Mr Carr publishes a letter from Singapore Airlines responding to complaints he made about inflight entertainment.

"Please accept my sincere apology if any part of our First Class inflight offering fell below your expectations," the letter says.

"Specifically, I have taken note of the lack of English subtitles for the Wagner Opera Siegfried."

The former minister rails against business class travel: "No edible food. No airline pyjamas. I lie in my tailored suit."

On another flight, he blasts the airline for its "ceramic food" and seat design that "owe a lot to the trans-Atlantic slave trade".

On his diet and exercise regime, Mr Carr reveals his favoured breakfast is steel-cut organic oats and berries and two poached eggs.

Mr Carr said on Wednesday night he made no apologies for wanting to arrive on missions for Australia in the best condition possible.

"It was such an inherently unhealthy lifestyle, living on planes, subsisting on that cuisine, I thought it would have knocked about two years off my life," he told ABC TV.

But he wanted his book also to shine lights on the dark corners of politics, particularly the role of the conservative pro-Israel lobby from Melbourne.

He says its influence in then-prime minister Julia Gillard's office reached an unhealthy level.

"I found it very frustrating that we couldn't issue, for example, a routine expression of concern about the spread of Israeli settlements on the West Bank," he said on Wednesday.

The matter came to a head in arguments over Australia's position on Palestine seeking increased non-state status at the United Nations.

He thought hard about breaking cabinet confidences on this issue but said in the end the public's right to know how foreign policy was made outweighted other considerations.

The book will retail for about $50 with proceeds going to Interplast Australia and New Zealand, a not-for-profit organisation that funds and delivers reconstructive surgery on poor children in developing countries.

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More relocatable units for Vic prisons

MORE shipping container-style "relocatable units" are being rolled out to boost the capacity of Victoria's prison system.

The Victorian government has announced another 27 units will be installed by August at two correctional facilities near Geelong, a gain of 81 medium-security beds.

"Relocatable units are already providing an important, immediate boost to capacity in Victoria's corrections system, and today's announcement will build on this," Corrections Minister Edward O'Donohue said on Wednesday.

"The security and design of the units will be consistent with the standard security accommodation already at Fulham and Marngoneet prisons."

The government has previously likened the units - which each house three inmates - to mining camp accommodation and has also pointed to their use in prisons in Western Australia, South Australia and New Zealand.

Expansion plans for Victoria's Loddon Prison, announced in March, include 15 of the units.

The government says it has added 1000 prison beds since 2011 with another 2500 in the pipeline, including the 1000-bed prison under construction at Ravenhall in Melbourne's west.

However, Community and Public Sector organiser Andrew Capp said the use of relocatable units, known as "dongaS", was inadequate because the doors could be prised open.

"The government is increasing the escape risks at the prisons that use these dodgy Dongas putting officers the community and other prisoners at risk," he said.

Mr Capp said Corrections Victoria had re-classified medium-security prisoners in walled prisons to those in lower security levels so they could be shifted to the units without fences at Dhurringile, Beechworth and Langi Kal Kal, and issued with monitoring bracelets that were not reliable.

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Great Wall's SUVs to be made in Malaysia

MALAYSIA has awarded a manufacturing licence to a 2 billion ringgit ($A662.27 million) venture that will assemble fuel-efficient SUVs for China's Great Wall Motor Co Ltd.

The licence was the first issued under the country's new car policy unveiled in January, aimed at making Malaysia a regional centre for energy-efficient vehicles.

Trade Minister Mustapa Mohamad said on Wednesday Go Automobile Manufacturing will invest 2 billion ringgit over the next four years to expand its manufacturing plant in northern Kedah state. It will have a production capacity of 100,000 vehicles when ready in 2018, with 60 per cent of the output to be exported to Southeast Asian countries, he said. About 4000 jobs will be created.

"This is a very important milestone" for Malaysia's vehicle industry, he said.

Mustapa said more manufacturing licences are expected to be issued this year to bolster the auto industry.

The new car policy is the latest step in a gradual liberalisation of Malaysia's protected car market. The government previously only issued new manufacturing licences for vehicles with engine size of 1.8 litres and above to protect national car makers Proton and Perodua.

But intense competition from neighbours Thailand and Indonesia is forcing Malaysia to loosen up its policy to woo investors.

Go Automobile's plant will assemble the Haval M4 and the H6 sports utility vehicles, with petrol and diesel engines at 1.5 and 2.0 litres, said Go's chief executive, Ahmad Azam Sulaiman.

He said the vehicles will have local content of up to 85 per cent by 2018 and will be initially exported to Thailand and Cambodia.

Great Wall Motors, the 8th largest auto company in China and its biggest sport utility vehicle maker, may take a stake in the Malaysian plant in the future, Ahmad Azam said.

Roger Wang, a senior executive with Great Wall Motors, said the company's sales reached 760,000 cars last year and is targeted to rise to 890,000 this year. The company is listed on the Hong Kong and Shanghai stock markets.

Wang said Southeast Asia, with more than 500 million people, is a significant region for Great Wall Motors, which last year exported 70,000 cars.

Great Wall currently sells two models in Malaysia through a local distributor. The company is likely to make Malaysia its Southeast Asian production base, executives said.

The government hopes its new auto policy will boost total industry production to 1.25 million vehicles and exports to 250,000 vehicles by 2020.

Last year, Malaysia's vehicle production was around 570,000 vehicles and exports were 20,000 vehicles. That was dwarfed by Thailand which makes more than two million vehicles a year and by Indonesia with annual production exceeding one million.

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Man shot in leg in Vic home invasion

A VICTORIAN man has suffered a minor gunshot wound during a home invasion.

A man and a woman were in their East Geelong home when two men, one armed with a firearm, burst in and shot at the man, police said.

The men them left the house.

The motive for the attack is unclear.

Ambulance Victoria spokesman John Mullen said the man, aged in his 20s, suffered a single gunshot wound to the back of his upper thigh and was taken to Geelong Hospital in a stable condition.

Geelong police are investigating.

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Fan tells inquest of Hillsborough 'hell'

THE son of the oldest fan killed in the 1989 Hillsborough football stadium disaster has told an inquest jury how he and his father battled desperately for their lives after witnessing "hell before our eyes".

Gerard Baron Jr recalled how he tried to reassure 67-year-old war veteran Gerard Baron Sr as they were caught in the crush that killed 96 Liverpool supporters.

In a tribute to Mr Baron Sr, who lived in Preston, his son told how they travelled together to the 1989 FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.

In evidence to fresh inquests into the events at Hillsborough on April 15, 1989, Mr Baron said: "What transpired that day changed my life forever.

"Neither of us envisaged witnessing hell before our eyes, nor did we expect to be fighting so desperately for our lives, as were so many others.

"The very last words I said to my father were, 'You will be okay'. How wrong I was."

Mr Baron had flown to the UK from his home in South Australia to give evidence to the inquest court in Warrington, Cheshire.

In his evidence he described Mr Baron Sr, a retired postal inspector, as a doting father to seven children, a supportive husband, a loving grandparent and a dear friend to many.

Mr Baron added that his father - whose brother played for Liverpool in the 1950 FA Cup Final - had a phenomenal football knowledge and was a "sportsman, serviceman and worthy citizen".

Nine other family members read tributes to their loved ones during the sixth day of the fresh inquests, including Sara Williams, whose late mother Anne Williams played a leading role in the campaign for the original inquest verdicts to be quashed.

The campaigner, whose 15-year-old son Kevin was among Hillsborough's victims, died from bowel cancer in April last year.

"I make this statement on behalf of all our family and friends, who all loved Kevin, but in particular for my mum Anne, who would have loved to have been standing here telling you all about Kevin and his cheeky ways," her daughter told the inquest jury of seven women and four men.

Ms Williams said Kevin, from Formby, Merseyside, was "mad about football, but crazy about Liverpool Football Club".

Her voice breaking with emotion, she told the inquest: "Kev was really close to mum - it would be absolutely no surprise to me if the word 'mum' was his last.

"My mum fought hard over the years to get the truth uncovered about what happened at Hillsborough.

"It is only now that I have children of my own that I understand the relentless determination that came so naturally to her, because of the love that she had for Kevin."

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Aussie tenor Skelton wins top opera award

AUSTRALIAN heroic tenor Stuart Skelton has been named male singer of the year at the second International Opera Awards in London.

The 45-year-old singer from Sydney gave a surprise performance at the awards ceremony at the Grosvenor House Hotel.

Skelton was given the top gong for his performance in Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes at the English National Opera (ENO).

The Australian beat rivals from Germany, France, Italy, the United States and Sweden.

Skelton considers the ENO his home company. His house debut was as Laca in the 2006 production of Jenufa.

"I was born in Australia, I live in the United States, but ENO is the company that has always been there," the tenor said.

"It takes risks, and when you take big risks sometimes they don't pay off, but when they do, they pay off in a way other people cant re-produce."

Skelton said opera was an art form "worth shouting and screaming for".

The female singer of the year award went to German soprano Diana Damrau.

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PM continues trade tour of north Asia

A FREE trade deal between Australia and South Korea will be formally signed when Prime Minister Tony Abbott arrives in Seoul for the next leg of his regional visit.

Mr Abbott and South Korean President Park Geun-hye will on Tuesday discuss trade and security in bilateral talks before witnessing the signing of the trade agreement struck in December.

The prime minister is also expected to address a business forum before sitting down for an official dinner with President Park later that evening.

The prime minister arrives in South Korea after two days in Tokyo, where he finalised a free trade agreement with Japan and elevated the defence and security relationship.

Mr Abbott is expected to spend around a day in South Korea, Australia's fourth-largest trading partner, before departing for China.

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Fatty food fires up body's defences: study

HIGH-FAT food provokes the same defence reaction in the body as a bacterial invasion.

The airways become inflamed as protective cells are deployed, says Associate Professor Lisa Wood, a speaker at a meeting of the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand.

She studied how people responded to a meal of two breakfast burgers and two hash browns, in what she calls an acute fat challenge.

"The fat activates the same defence mechanism that responds to bacteria," says Prof Wood, a nutrition expert at the University of Newcastle's Centre for Asthma and Respiratory Diseases.

"The fat in the blood peaks after about four hours. If this inflammation happens after every meal it becomes a chronic problem."

Prof Wood's acute fat challenge shows people with asthma should avoid fatty food before using ventolin, a drug that increases air flow to the lungs.

They get the same initial benefit as other people, but the effectiveness wears off as the fat content of the blood increases.

"By four hours we've got this inflammation occurring and lung function returns to pre-treatment levels.

"That's pretty important. It suggests that if people are eating these types of meals their bronchodilator is not going to work effectively."

Another study by Prof Wood shows significant benefits for asthmatic people who eat lots of vegetables and fruit.

The three-month study shows people on a diet that includes five serves of vegetables and two of fruit a day have fewer asthma attacks than those who eat two serves of fruit and one of vegetables.

There is increasing evidence that diet is important for asthma management, she says.

"Low fruit and vegetable intake increases inflammation and increases your risk having an attack."

Prof Wood presented research at the meeting that shows poor quality diets could be contributing to increased asthma prevalence.

Her team studied 99 people with stable asthma and 61 healthy controls.

They found those with asthma were more likely to eat higher volumes of processed food, fat and refined sugar than the controls.

"The usual diet consumed by asthmatics in this study was pro-inflammatory relative to the diet consumed by the healthy controls."

This could contribute to an increased incidence of asthma.

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Afghan bombings kill 18, injure 9

AT least 15 civilians and three policemen have been killed and nine others wounded in two separate attacks in Afghanistan, officials say.

"A roadside bomb struck a bus at 6pm (0030 AEST) in Maiwand district, in which 13 people - all civilians - were killed and five others injured," Zia ul Rahman Durrani, a police spokesman for Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar, said.

"Locals were travelling from one village to another when the bomb hit their vehicle," Durrani said.

Officials in Kandahar hospital said two of the wounded later succumbed to their injuries in hospital.

In another attack in the western province of Herat, three police officers were killed and four others were injured after a roadside bomb hit their vehicle.

"The police were patrolling in Shindand district today when a bomb placed on a roadside hit their vehicle," said Abdul Raouf Ahmadi, a local police spokesman.

Also in Kandahar, a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-laden mini-van in front of a convoy of coalition forces.

"The bomber exploded his mini-van targeting a US convoy in Maiwand district," an Afghan police spokesman said.

The bomber died but nobody was hurt in the attack.

"We can confirm an ISAF convoy was targeted by a vehicle-loaded today in southern Afghanistan, but no casualties were reported," a NATO spokesperson said.

The attacks came two days after around 7 million Afghans cast their ballots to choose a new president.

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Royals rest up for whirlwind NZ tour

THE Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their baby Prince George will have a day of rest after their long flight from Britain before their whirlwind tour of New Zealand begins in earnest.

The royal family have no public engagements planned and will spend Tuesday recuperating after their 27-hour trip at Government House in Wellington, where they were officially welcomed to the country on Monday.

They'll ease into their busy tour schedule with an informal Plunket meeting on Wednesday afternoon, where Kate and William will chat to other first-time parents while George plays with kids his own age.

Government House will act as a home base where George will stay while the duke and duchess travel around on mainly day trips.

The Edwardian two-storey building is surrounded by 12 hectares of grounds, and has a tennis court, squash court and swimming pool if the royal visitors want any exercise away from the public gaze.

The royals flew to Sydney on a commercial flight and switched to a VIP Royal New Zealand Air Force flight for the final leg to the capital.

The jet landed only 20 minutes late despite fog threatening to force it to land at Ohakea military base, a two-hour drive out of Wellington.

The wet weather that greeted the duke and duchess upon their arrival is expected to linger for the next few days.

The tour takes in eight locations around the country. It is Kate's first time in New Zealand.

It's also eight-month-old George's first official overseas trip. He's following in the tradition of his father who also visited the country as a baby.

The duke, duchess and George are due to fly out on April 16 for Sydney to begin their 10-day Australian leg.

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Nigerian economy becomes biggest in Africa

OFFICIALS say Nigeria's recalculated economy is worth $US510 billion ($A554 billion), by far the biggest in Africa and easily surpassing that of previous continental titleholder, South Africa, at $US353 billion.

Figures announced on Sunday are the first recount since 1990 of the GDP of Africa's biggest oil producer but do little for the 112 million Nigerians scrabbling to survive in poverty.

The International Monetary Fund had used the 1990 base to estimate Nigeria's GDP in 2013 at $US292 billion.

But that did not take into account new industries like telecommunications, information technology, music, airlines, burgeoning online retail outlets and Nollywood film production that didn't exist when the last GDP count was made in 1990.

Then, there were 300,000 landlines, while today, Nigeria has 100 million cell phone users.

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One burger 'enough to max out on salt'

A SINGLE Australian burger can contain more salt than an adult can safely eat in a day.

That's without chips, and even after four years of declining sodium in pizzas, burgers and takeaway chicken.

New research shows fast-food companies are using less salt in their products, but health experts say the reduction is not co-ordinated, and is also too little and too slow.

Too much salt is a killer, causing high blood pressure that leads to heart attacks and strokes. It has also been linked to bone damage and stomach cancer.

Research leader Dr Elizabeth Dunford, of The George Institute for Global Health and the University of Sydney, compared the salt content of more than 300 fast-food products over four years.

It will take government intervention to achieve significant sector-wide improvements, says Dr Dunford, whose study is published in the Medical Journal Of Australia.

The average Australian eats more than double the recommended four grams or single teaspoon of salt a day.

People can consume their entire daily quota in one burger, says Dr Dunford, who compared nutrition information on the Pizza Hut, Hungry Jacks, KFC, McDonald's, Subway and Domino's websites.

Overall salt content fell during the four years, but levels in side dishes rose.

Pizza Hut was the only brand to increase the amount of salt on its menu, mainly because of increased serving sizes and side dishes such as chicken bites.

"Salt levels in Australian fast food remain high. These small reductions in salt levels could be easily undone by the trend towards larger portion sizes," Dr Dunford says.

She urges Australia to adopt a strategy similar to the UK's government-led salt-reduction program, which has achieved lower salt levels than other countries.

"Salt reduction is one of the most cost-effective options for improving public health," Dr Dunford says.

Asked for comment, Professor Garry Jennings of the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute called for more action.

"The inconvenient truth is that there's too much salt in many commercial foods and being blind to it can cause significant damage," he says.

"Better labelling and a stronger commitment from processed food companies would go a long way to tackling Australia's burden of cardiovascular disease."

The Heart Foundation's Dr Robert Grenfell described the findings as a step in the right direction.

"But we're mindful that what's in the actual product can, in some instances, vary from what's stated on the company's nutritional panels."

"Research suggests that if we cut the nation's salt intake by an average of three grams a day, we could prevent 6000 deaths every year."

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PM to meet Japan's emperor at palace

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott will meet Japan's revered emperor at his palace ahead of an announcement about the outcome of free trade talks in Tokyo.

Mr Abbott on Monday will be formally welcomed to Japan, after spending the prior day in Tokyo mingling with business leaders and dining with his counterpart Shinzo Abe.

He wants to finalise a free trade deal with Japan during his visit, but negotiators in Tokyo have failed to reach a satisfactory agreement so far.

Mr Abbott is confident a deal can be struck, but as talks get down to the wire he won't miss an opportunity to sell the benefits of freer trade with Australia.

"More trade will make both countries richer and our relationship even stronger," he will tell the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Monday.

"Eventually, this will be seen as a milestone in our relationship."

Mr Abbott promised at the September election to secure free trade deals with Japan, China and South Korea within 12 months, despite some negotiations having dragged on for years.

The outcome of these latest talks is expected to be announced by both leaders on Monday evening ahead of a formal dinner with Prime Minister Abe at Japan's state guest house.

But before then Mr Abbott will meet Emperor Akihito, the head of Japan's royal family, at the Imperial Palace in the nation's capital.

He will also make history on his first official trip to North Asia when he later becomes the first foreign leader to speak at Japan's high-level National Security Council.

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Guinea passengers screened for Ebola

HEALTH officials in Guinea say all passengers departing from the capital city's airport must fill out a health form and have their temperature taken as part of an effort to combat the spread of the deadly Ebola hemorrhagic fever.

Dr Sakoba Keita, director of prevention at the health ministry, said anyone with a temperature higher than 38 degrees Celsius would be tested for the disease, which has killed 86 people in the West African nation since an outbreak began in February.

French Health Minister Marisol Touraine said Saturday that French doctors from the Pasteur Institute would be on hand to watch boarding procedures at the airport in Conakry.

Two Ebola deaths have been confirmed in neighbouring Liberia, and suspected cases have also been reported in Mali.

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