Flash floods killed a woman and forced evacuations as torrential rain drenched Australia`s battered city of Brisbane Thursday just days after it was hit by a violent storm, officials said.

The woman died when her car was swept away by floodwaters east of the Queensland state capital, police said.

Japan and Australia said Wednesday they were doing everything they could to diplomatically resolve an emotionally charged dispute over whaling, though officials` remarks showed divisions remained deep.

Hollywood heart-throb Hugh Jackman has become the first Australian to be crowned `Sexiest Man Alive` by People magazine, it was announced on Wednesday.

Jackman, 40, who stars alongside Nicole Kidman in Baz Luhrmann`s sweeping epic `Australia` due for release in the United States next week, beat out a slew of rivals including Javier Bardem, David Beckham and Daniel Craig.

Japan said Wednesday it received assurances from Australia that it would seek a diplomatic solution to an emotionally charged dispute on whaling and avoid the use of force.

Japan`s fleet set off Monday to the Antarctic Ocean with plans to slaughter hundreds of whales despite strong opposition from Australia and New Zealand where whale-watching is a popular pastime.

Australia and China have agreed to speed up work on a free trade agreement following discussions on the global financial crisis, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said.

Rudd, who met China`s President Hu Jintao in Washington following G20 talks on tackling the financial meltdown, said no deadline for an agreement had yet been set.

A violent storm ripped through picturesque tourist hubs in eastern Australia, leaving one person dead and causing damage comparable to that wrought by a cyclone, officials said Monday.

Sunday`s storm tore the roofs off scores of homes, felled trees and power lines that flattened cars and sent corrugated iron sheeting and other debris flying through the air.

Australia`s second-largest brewer, Lion Nathan Ltd, has made a 7.6-billion-dollars (4.9 billion US) bid to buy soft drinks giant Coca-Cola Amatil, CCA said on Monday.

Lion Nathan, owned by Japanese giant Kirin Holdings, which supports the bid, made the cash and stock offer to acquire the drinks maker on November 7 in a deal that would form the country`s largest beverages empire.

MADRID, Nov 17, 2007 (AFP) - Penpic of the new World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) president John Fahey, who was elected here on Saturday:

SYDNEY, Oct 22, 2007 (AFP) - Wholesale price data released Monday show Australia's inflationary pressures are building, fuelling the possibility of another interest rate rise, analysts said.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics said the producer price index (PPI) increased by 1.1 percent in the third quarter, slightly more than the 1.0 percent rise the market was expecting.

SYDNEY, Oct 22, 2007 (AFP) - Australia's embattled prime minister Monday denied that a television network's coverage of an election debate was cut because a live graph showed he was losing to his opponent.

The charge of censorship threatened to overshadow Sunday night's debate between conservative premier John Howard and centre-left Labor Party leader Kevin Rudd on issues such as Iraq and the economy.