Sept 7 in doubt as Rudd has things to do

Speculation is growing that Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is looking to approve a September 7 election. Source: AAP

KEVIN Rudd says he has "made no determination whatsoever" on when the federal election will be held, throwing doubt on the likelihood of a September 7 election.

The prime minister also told reporters on Saturday he wanted to attend a G20 summit just days before what had been considered the favoured poll date, raising the prospect the election could be pushed out to at least September 21.

Speculation had been building that Mr Rudd was planning to visit the governor-general on Sunday or Monday to seek approval for a September 7 election.

But Mr Rudd said the government had yet to conclude negotiations with Victoria over schools funding, with Western Australia on disability care, and with NSW over new environmental assessment procedures.

"We have a few things to attend to yet," he said after signing a new asylum-seeker resettlement agreement with Nauru on Saturday.

"So therefore on your question (about September 7), I've made no determination whatsoever in terms of the date of an election."

Whether Mr Rudd would attend the upcoming G20 leaders summit had also been a source of constant speculation, as the St Petersburg meeting is being held on September 5 and 6.

Mr Rudd confirmed it was "my intention to be in St Petersburg".

"But I'm very mindful also of the challenges that lie ahead of us as well," he told reporters in Brisbane.

"I place enormous priority to the G20 and its agenda.

"At the same time I will always balance that against other considerations before us as well."

If Mr Rudd does still decide on a September 7 election, it will need to be called by Monday to cover the minimum 33-day campaign period.

With September 14 all but ruled out because it had been chosen by his predecessor Julia Gillard, a September 21 election would be the next possible date.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott declared his team ready for the campaign.

"We've been ready for a long time," Mr Abbott told reporters in Melbourne, when asked about a September 7 election.

"I think the Australian people are eager to seize the chance to control the government once more.

"This election is a choice between strength and stability under the coalition, or more chaos, division and dysfunction under the Labor party."

Speculation over the election date came a day after the government's economic update, which predicted weaker economic growth, growing unemployment and more government debt, as well as a $33.3 billion writedown in revenues.

Shadow treasurer Joe Hockey said he expected the prime minister to "run to the polls in the next two days".

"Because the boats keep coming, the debt is blowing out by $3 billion a week and unemployment continues to rise, heading towards 800,000," he told reporters in Sydney.

"If I were Kevin Rudd I would be going to the polls as soon as possible."

But foreshadowing how central the economy will again be during the campaign, Finance Minister Penny Wong released government analysis which, she said, uncovered a $70 billion hole in the coalition's fiscal credentials.

"The government has laid out our plans and our budget," Senator Wong told reporters in Melbourne.

"It's time Tony Abbott did, because what this document shows against what Tony Abbott has said is that he would have to make $70 billion worth of cuts."

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Nauru signs up to Rudd's stop boats plan

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has announced a new refugee plan with the Pacific Island nation of Nauru. Source: AAP

PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has announced a new agreement with the Pacific Island nation of Nauru, which like Australia's deal with Papua New Guinea, will deny asylum seekers the chance to resettle in Australia.

But the Opposition says it's just a ploy to win votes.

Mr Rudd and the president of the Republic of Nauru, Baron Waqa, signed the memorandum of understanding at a press conference in Brisbane on Saturday.

The deal supercedes the one struck between the nations last year and allows for asylum seekers to not only be processed in the Pacific Island nation, but also to be settled there.

"No matter where people smugglers try to land asylum seekers by boat in Australia, they will not be settled in Australia," Mr Rudd told reporters.

"This is our core principal."

The Nauru agreement is similar to the deal struck with Papua New Guinea's prime minister, Peter O'Neill, two weeks ago and is the latest salvo in Mr Rudd's tough new approach to asylum seekers.

Immigration Minister Tony Burke attended Saturday's announcement and agreed the number of asylum seekers sent to Nauru would be small.

They would comprise families or unaccompanied minors and a new site to house them had been chosen, he said.

The most urgent priority though was expanding the capacity of the island nation's prison, he said.

Australia will provide $29.9 million in aid to Nauru in 2013-2014 under the plan.

A further $17 million will be spent on rebuilding the prison, which was damaged in a recent riot on the island.

Funds from a contingency reserve will also be allocated according to the number of refugees Nauru accepts.

Mr Burke flagged the possibility of reaching similar deals concerning refugees with other nations in the region.

"I'm prepared to say there are other countries who have raised this with us as well," he said.

"There are a number of countries within the region who have signed the convention and who have a genuine commitment to wanting to take a regional approach, and if we're able to reach agreements with them then we will."

Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison said the plan was "elaborate staging" by Labor with no real substance.

"Nauru will play no real role in offshore processing arrangements for the foreseeable future under Labor," he said in a statement on Saturday.

"This announcement is just a patch-up for the devastation of the riots that cost taxpayers up to $60 million and was allowed to occur on Labor's watch."

The Australian Greens said the government had hit a new low on refugee policy.

"This is just more cruelty at the cost of Australia's generous heart and it is trashing our global reputation," Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said in a statement on Saturday.

"It seems there is no limit to the cruelty that either Kevin Rudd or Tony Abbott are prepared to inflict on refugees in their race to bottom as they race to the polls."

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Mugabe claims victory in 'sham' poll

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe looks to extend his 33-year rule after a shock landslide vote. Source: AAP

ZIMBABWE is set to release the official results of disputed elections, in which President Robert Mugabe's party romped to victory, as the opposition holds emergency talks over the "sham" polls.

Full results were expected later on Saturday but Mugabe's ZANU-PF party said it had already won the 140 seats in parliament required to press ahead with controversial amendments to the constitution.

"We have already gone beyond two-thirds. It's a super majority," a top party official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

With 186 of 210 constituencies officially counted after Wednesday's disputed poll, Mugabe's party already had a commanding lead, winning 137 seats in parliament.

Party spokesman Rugare Gumbo said: "Our opponents don't know what hit them", adding that 89-year-old Mugabe could win "70 to 75 per cent" in the presidential vote.

The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who described the vote as a "sham", went into emergency talks on Saturday to decide their next action.

The MDC has vowed not to accept the election results, sparking fears of a repeat of bloody violence that marked the aftermath of the 2008 election.

"Emotions are high, tensions are high across the country," MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said.

While on the country's streets things have remained calm, UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged both political rivals to send "clear messages of calm" to their supporters.

Ban hopes that the broadly "calm and peaceful atmosphere" of election day "will prevail during the vote counting and throughout the completion of the electoral process," said his spokesman Martin Nesirky.

A senior MDC official, speaking on condition of anonymity, painted a picture of the dilemma the party faces amid its claims the election was stolen by ZANU-PF.

"We can't tell people to be calm, we can't tell people to demonstrate unless you know the outcome," said the source.

Another senior party official dismissed speculation that the MDC is being offered a few posts in government.

The influential 15-member southern African bloc SADC also implored "all Zimbabweans to exercise restraint, patience and calm".

All eyes are now on the MDC which was expected to hold a press conference on Saturday afternoon following its meeting.

Observers appeared divided over the conduct of the poll.

The African Union's top poll observer, Olusegun Obasanjo, said shortly after polling stations closed that the election had been "peaceful, orderly, free and fair".

The SADC stopped short of declaring it "fair" but said it was "free and peaceful".

"We have said this election is free, indeed very free," said top SADC election observer Bernard Membe. "We did not say it was fair ... we didn't want to jump to a conclusion at this point in time."

Membe on Friday met Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe for three decades, to "wish him good luck as he is preparing himself for the inauguration," he told later told journalists.

He said he would try to convince Tsvangirai to concede defeat.

SADC negotiated the creation of a power-sharing government in the wake of 2008's bloody poll.

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UN warns of plight of children in Syria

The United Nations has sounded the alarm about the plight of women and children in Syria. Source: AAP

THE UN has sounded the alarm about the plight of women and children in Syria's Homs, urging all parties in the conflict to enable access to some 400,000 trapped civilians.

"The situation of women and children in the Syrian city of Homs is rapidly deteriorating," UNICEF said in a statement, adding that "new checkpoints are preventing more supplies from entering" the neighbourhood of Al-Waer.

"Cannot all those involved agree that the innocent women and children in Homs, and across Syria, should be spared all possible suffering?" UNICEF's Executive Director Anthony Lake asked.

Around 400,000 civilians, mostly women and children, who were forced to flee other areas of Homs have sought refuge in Al-Waer, and are now "living in partially constructed buildings, schools and other public buildings", Lake said.

But the situation there "has worsened, with reports of intense daily clashes, and rocket and mortar strikes causing many casualties", he added.

UNICEF says it and other organisations have been distributing basic supplies and ensuring access to water for civilians fleeing the fighting.

"Water and electricity is still available for now but vegetables, milk and other essentials are in increasingly short supply. Our own emergency supplies will run out within days," said the agency.

Lake called on "all parties to facilitate immediate safe access to these families so we can provide life-saving assistance, and to allow those families currently trapped in Al-Waer who wish to leave to do so in safety and in dignity".

Homs has suffered some of the worst violence in Syria's 28-month conflict.

This week, government forces overran Khaldiyeh district, one of the rebels' last bastions in Syria's third city.

The army is now pressing its campaign to uproot rebels from other areas in Homs, including the central Old City district.

The UN says more than 100,000 people have been killed in Syria's war, most of them civilians.

Millions more have been forced to flee their homes, about 75 per cent of them women and children.

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Tunisia mounts anti-Islamist operation

Tunisian has launched a land and air operation against Islamist militants near the Algerian border. Source: AAP

TUNISIAN forces have launched a land and air operation against Islamist militants near the Algerian border, the military says, as Tunis battles a crisis sparked by a political slaying.

"A huge operation, with ground and air units, was launched at dawn to clean up the (Chaambi) mountain" area, armed forces spokesman Taoufik Rahmouni told Mosaique FM radio on Friday.

He said the assault was mounted after clashes on Thursday night between soldiers and "a terrorist group", referring to fugitive Islamist militants.

"We have not killed or arrested any terrorists" to date, he said, without giving a number for the hunted militants.

A military source on the ground earlier told AFP "the terrorist group is surrounded" in the Mount Chaambi area where eight Tunisian soldiers were slain this week.

He said helicopters had carried out air strikes.

"Either they give themselves up or they will be killed," he told AFP.

He said the attack took place around 16 kilometres from the town of Kasserine, near Mount Chaambi, where the soldiers were found on Monday with their throats cut after an ambush by militants.

Mosaique FM said the raids were aimed at destroying militant hideouts. The explosions could be heard in Kasserine.

Tunisian troops have intensified their hunt for gunmen in Mount Chaambi since the spring, after several members of the security forces were killed or wounded by explosive devices.

A military source also said on Friday that a group of Salafists, a hardline branch of Sunni Islam, were arrested in a Kasserine mosque.

This week's gruesome attack on soldiers has prompted the army in neighbouring Algeria to reinforce its presence along the border.

The latest military operation came as leaders in Tunis opened talks with opposition and civil society representatives to try to defuse the political crisis sparked by the July 25 murder of opposition MP Mohamed Brahmi.

The killing has been blamed on Islamists, with a connection made to the February murder of fellow opposition head Chokri Belaid - the same gun was used in both killings.

Suspects in the Brahmi case have been named but so far no arrests have been announced.

As the political crisis enters its second week, thousands of supporters and opponents of the government have been holding rival street protests every night after breaking the Ramadan fast.

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Icahn files lawsuit over Dell buyout offer

ACTIVIST investor Carl Icahn is suing Dell to prevent the PC maker from changing crucial details of a buyout offer from founder Michael Dell that Icahn stridently opposes.

Icahn's complaint seeks to prevent the company from setting a new record date for a special meeting at which shareholders will vote on an offer that Dell recently raised.

Dell and the Round Rock, Texas, company agreed months ago on a deal in which Michael Dell will buy the company for $US24.4 billion ($A27.46 billion), or $US13.65 per share.

Icahn and other big Dell investors have said that offer undervalues the company.

Dell has since raised that offer to $US13.75 per share, and a board committee has proposed changing the record date for a special meeting on it.

That would allow a bigger pool of stock owners to cast ballots on the raised offer.

Dell Inc shareholders are scheduled to vote on Friday on the $US13.65-per-share offer. But the Wall Street Journal has reported that the buyout group led by Michael Dell is nearing a new agreement with the company's special committee to increase the deal's price in exchange for a change to the voting rules behind it that would help get the deal approved.

Icahn on Thursday filed a complaint against the company and its board members in the Delaware Court of Chancery.

Icahn argued that if the company is allowed to set a new record date for the meeting, it should hold it at the same as the annual meeting.

Icahn wants to use the annual meeting to replace Dell's board and then oust Michael Dell, the chairman and CEO.

The investor said in a statement that he also wants a declaration that Dell's board breached its fiduciary duties to shareholders by, among other things, adjourning a July 24 special meeting without also scheduling the company's annual meeting.

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Armed thief robs upmarket salon

A MAN has robbed a beauty salon in Sydney's upmarket suburb of Woollahra in the city's east.

The masked offender entered the Queen Street premises about 4pm (AEST) on Friday and told staff he had a knife.

He demanded money from the female employee who gave him a quantity of cash before he fled the scene.

No one was injured during the incident.

He was described as being 172cm tall, aged in his early 30s and was wearing a black top and long black pants.

AAP vpm/svm SYDNEY, Aug 2 AAP - A man has robbed a beauty salon in Sydney's upmarket suburb of Woollahra in the city's east.

The masked offender entered the Queen Street premises about 4pm (AEST) on Friday and told staff he had a knife.

He demanded money from the female employee who gave him a quantity of cash before he fled the scene.

No one was injured during the incident.

He was described as being 172cm tall, aged in his early 30s and was wearing a black top and long black pants.

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Iran's Rowhani calls Israel an 'old wound'

Iran's president-elect Hassan Rowhani has called Israel "an old wound that must be eliminated". Source: AAP

IRAN'S president-elect Hassan Rowhani has called Israel "an old wound that must be eliminated", the ISNA news agency reports, drawing a sharp response from Israel's prime minister.

"The Islamic world must show unity against the Zionist regime, since this regime is an old wound that has lain for years in its body and must be eliminated," Rowhani was quoted as saying on Friday.

Rowhani - who will be inaugurated at the weekend - spoke on the sidelines of al-Quds (Jerusalem Day), an annual event organised by the Iranian establishment on the last Friday of Ramadan, to express solidarity with the Palestinians and opposition to the Israelis.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the comments revealed the true face of Iran's president-elect, often considered a moderate reformer.

"Rowhani has shown his true colours sooner than expected," Netanyahu said in Jerusalem.

"This is what the man thinks and it is the action plan of the Iranian regime," he said.

"There is a new president, but the goal of the regime has not changed - to develop nuclear weapons to threaten Israel, the Middle East and peace and security in the entire world."

Netanyahu added that a state that threatens Israel with annihilation should be prevented from acquiring any weapons of mass destruction.

The non-recognition of Israel has been part of Iran's foreign policy doctrine since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and is therefore untouchable.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has on past occasions referred to Israel as a "cancerous tumour" to be "removed from the region". Outgoing president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad frequently expressed similar sentiment.

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Exiled Kazakh oligarch arrested in France

AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France, Aug 1 AFP - Mukhtar Ablyazov, an exiled oligarch and fierce critic of Kazakhstan's regime, is being held in France as he awaits potential extradition after his high-profile arrest, prosecutors say.

The former Kazakh energy and trade minister, who became an opposition leader before fleeing the country over accusations he embezzled billions of dollars, was arrested on Wednesday near the French Riviera resort of Cannes on a warrant issued by Ukraine.

Solange Legras, prosecutor at the local court handling his case, told AFP Ablyazov would likely be put in prison as authorities examine extradition requests against him and decide whether or not to send him away - a process that will take at least 40 days.

Once close to the Kazakh elite, Ablyazov was jailed in 2002 for abuse of power and illegal business activities after co-founding and leading an opposition party, in a move widely seen as a bid to silence him.

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev has been at the helm of the ex-Soviet country for almost 22 years, bringing economic reforms and prosperity to the energy-rich nation but cracking down on political opponents and drawing accusations of rights violations.

Upon his release, Ablyazov returned to finance and led the Kazakh BTA Bank, but fled to Britain in 2009 amid accusations he stole billions of dollars in state and investor funds.

He later left London and his whereabouts had been unknown ever since.

Three countries - Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine - have demanded his extradition.

Legras said France and Kazakhstan do not have an extradition agreement, and added Russia may no longer want to pursue him.

"So we are examining the extradition demand of Ukraine, where the BTA Bank also had some interests," she said.

Ablyazov was arrested on Wednesday in his home in Mouans-Sartoux, around 10 kilometres (six miles) outside Cannes.

"There was no violence. There had been some risks (of violence) as he is protected by a kind of private militia," Legras said, adding police had previously flown over his home to prepare the arrest.

Ablyazov's wife and six-year-old daughter were deported back to Kazakhstan from Italy in May without being given the right to appeal, sparking a huge scandal in the country.

In a statement in the Italian daily La Stampa, two more of his children called on French authorities not to extradite him to Ukraine.

"We know that Ukrainian authorities act on behalf of Kazakhstan, because our father is the most important political opponent to the dictator Nazarbayev," Madina and Madiyar Ablyazov wrote.

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Weak demand weighs on ArcelorMittal's Q2

ARCELORMITTAL, the world's largest steelmaker, has cut its forecasts for the full-year as it reported a fall in production, shipments and earnings during the second-quarter due to continued weak demand and low raw material prices.

But the Luxembourg-based company says that the worst of a market downturn is behind it now and with the outlook in Europe improving, it expects a stronger second half.

The company posted a net loss of $780 million (585 million euros) during the period, in contrast to a $1.02 billion profit in the same period of 2012. Revenues meanwhile fell to $20.2 billion from $22.5 billion.

Despite the disappointing second quarter performance, chief executive Lakshmi Mittal said the benefits of the restructuring efforts "are evident," particularly in Europe.

"Although we have revised our full year guidance, the second half should deliver a clear underlying improvement relative to the second half of 2012, which we believe marked the lowest point in the cycle," he said.

He forecast operating earnings before interest, depreciation of goodwill and amortisation, or EBITDA, of $6.5 billion this year. After first quarter results, he had forecast full year EBITDA of $7.1 million. However, he said the underlying business will be picking up steam by year end, driven by an increase of 1-2 per cent in steel shipments, a 20 per cent increase in iron ore shipments and as cost cutting initiatives bear fruit.

In early trading in Amsterdam, shares were up 0.2 per cent to 9.918 euros.

Steel production fell to 22.5 million tons in the quarter from 22.8 million tons a year ago. However production during the second quarter was slightly above the 22.4 million tons recorded in the first quarter of 2013. Similarly, steel shipments of 21.3 million tons were slightly below last year's levels but above first quarter 2013 levels.

Lakshmi also said he expected company debt to peak at $17 billion this year.

In Europe, where markets have been weakest and the company has struggled with politically-sensitive plant closures, the company posted a net loss of 150 million euros that included 119 million euros of restructuring costs.

But sales of flat carbon increased slightly, as did steel shipment volumes.

It added that it believed car sales are at or near a cyclical bottom.

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Exiled Kazakh oligarch arrested in France

Three countries have demanded extradition of an exiled oligarch who was arrested in France. Source: AAP

AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France, Aug 1 AFP - Mukhtar Ablyazov, an exiled oligarch and fierce critic of Kazakhstan's regime, is being held in France as he awaits potential extradition after his high-profile arrest, prosecutors say.

The former Kazakh energy and trade minister, who became an opposition leader before fleeing the country over accusations he embezzled billions of dollars, was arrested on Wednesday near the French Riviera resort of Cannes on a warrant issued by Ukraine.

Solange Legras, prosecutor at the local court handling his case, told AFP Ablyazov would likely be put in prison as authorities examine extradition requests against him and decide whether or not to send him away - a process that will take at least 40 days.

Once close to the Kazakh elite, Ablyazov was jailed in 2002 for abuse of power and illegal business activities after co-founding and leading an opposition party, in a move widely seen as a bid to silence him.

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev has been at the helm of the ex-Soviet country for almost 22 years, bringing economic reforms and prosperity to the energy-rich nation but cracking down on political opponents and drawing accusations of rights violations.

Upon his release, Ablyazov returned to finance and led the Kazakh BTA Bank, but fled to Britain in 2009 amid accusations he stole billions of dollars in state and investor funds.

He later left London and his whereabouts had been unknown ever since.

Three countries - Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine - have demanded his extradition.

Legras said France and Kazakhstan do not have an extradition agreement, and added Russia may no longer want to pursue him.

"So we are examining the extradition demand of Ukraine, where the BTA Bank also had some interests," she said.

Ablyazov was arrested on Wednesday in his home in Mouans-Sartoux, around 10 kilometres (six miles) outside Cannes.

"There was no violence. There had been some risks (of violence) as he is protected by a kind of private militia," Legras said, adding police had previously flown over his home to prepare the arrest.

Ablyazov's wife and six-year-old daughter were deported back to Kazakhstan from Italy in May without being given the right to appeal, sparking a huge scandal in the country.

In a statement in the Italian daily La Stampa, two more of his children called on French authorities not to extradite him to Ukraine.

"We know that Ukrainian authorities act on behalf of Kazakhstan, because our father is the most important political opponent to the dictator Nazarbayev," Madina and Madiyar Ablyazov wrote.

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Twitter bomb threat to UK women reporters

British police are investigating a bomb threat made on Twitter to three British female journalists. Source: AAP

BRITISH police are investigating a bomb threat made on Twitter to several women including three prominent journalists, amid a growing outcry over abusive tweets.

The message from anonymous user @98JU98U989, now suspended, said: "A BOMB HAS BEEN PLACED OUTSIDE YOUR HOME. IT WILL GO OFF AT EXACTLY 10.47PM ON A TIMER AND TRIGGER DESTROYING EVERYTHING".

Hadley Freeman, a columnist with the Guardian newspaper, Grace Dent of the Independent and Catherine Mayer, Europe editor of the US-based Time magazine, all said on Twitter they had received the message on Wednesday evening.

Freeman had written a column a day earlier headlined "How to use the internet without being a total loser", responding to a series of violent and sexually explicit messages aimed at women on the social network.

High-profile women in Britain have long complained of online harassment, but the issue reached front pages last week when feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez met with a barrage of abuse after successfully lobbying for novelist Jane Austen to appear on a banknote.

"We can confirm that the Metropolitan Police service has received allegations relating to bomb threats sent to a number of females on Twitter," a spokesman for the London force said on Thursday.

"Inquiries continue. There have been no arrests and no bombs actually went off."

Freeman said police had advised her not to stay at home overnight.

"If it's illegal to threaten to bomb an airport, it's illegal to threaten to bomb me," she added on Twitter.

Sara Lang, a social media manager at US campaign group AARP, tweeted that she had also received the bomb threat and had contacted US police.

More than 100,000 people have signed an online petition asking Twitter to improve its procedures against abusive messages since the spate of threats spread from Criado-Perez to two female MPs.

Twitter is rolling out a "report abuse" button on individual tweets, but campaigners say the form to which it leads is too long and complicated for those facing a barrage of threats.

Two British men were arrested after Criado-Perez and the MPs reported menacing tweets to police - a 21-year-old from Manchester in central England and a 25-year-old from Northumbria in the northeast.

Both were questioned on suspicion of malicious communications, and have been released on bail.

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European shares rise ahead of Fed decision

EUROPE'S main stock markets have mostly risen in cautious deals before the outcome of the US Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting, dealers say.

In late morning deals on Wednesday, London's FTSE 100 index of top blue-chip companies added 0.55 per cent to 6,607 points and Frankfurt's DAX 30 edged 0.02 per cent higher to 8,272.80 points, while the Paris CAC 40 eased 0.03 per cent to 3,985.5 points.

Despite the gains in London, Barclays shares sank 1.13 per cent to 288 pence as investors continued to react to news of a vast STG12.8 billion ($A21.65 billion) hole in the British bank's balance sheet.

The stock had already plunged by 5.74 per cent on Tuesday.

In foreign exchange activity, the euro firmed to $US1.3282 from $US1.3261 in New York late on Tuesday.

On the London Bullion Market, the price of gold advanced to $US1,331.78 an ounce from $US1,324.15 on Tuesday.

"The two-day meeting of the policy arm of the Federal Reserve comes to a conclusion today which may lead to more subdued market conditions as traders leave any decision-making on both short- and medium-term direction until after the announcements," said CMC Markets analyst Nick Dale-Lace.

Asian markets mostly fell on Wednesday in the final hours before investors discover the Fed's plans for its massive stimulus program.

Traders have remained cautious ahead of the central bank meeting, although most economists are confident it will indicate that its $US85-billion-a-month bond-buying policy will remain in place for the time being.

All eyes will be on the accompanying statement from the Fed's rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC).

Ahead of the Fed announcement at 1800 GMT (0400 AEST Thursday), markets digested a raft of economic data in Europe.

Unemployment held at record highs in the 17-nation eurozone in June, but there was some hope of an improvement as the numbers of those out of work fell slightly, official data showed on Wednesday.

The overall eurozone jobless rate came in at 12.1 per cent, unchanged from May, the Eurostat data agency said.

On a more upbeat note, the number of unemployed people fell by 24,000 to 19.26 million, according to Eurostat.

"Encouraging unemployment data for the eurozone has got things off to a positive start on Wednesday," said analyst Craig Erlam at trading firm Alpari.

"However, investors are clearly focused on one thing today, the FOMC statement, with European indices and US futures only trading marginally higher in response to the figures."

Meanwhile, official data showed that the unemployment rate in European powerhouse Germany held steady at 6.8 per cent in July, but the number of jobless fell by 7,000.

"A busy day dawns for markets, with a bombardment of data that leaves little time for traders to rest," added IG analyst Chris Beauchamp.

"It started early this morning with weak German retail sales, but the picture got better as both German and Italian employment data showing welcome improvement."

In Paris, shares in PSA Peugeot Citroen surged by slightly more than 7.0 per cent on results showing an almost halving of losses in the first six months.

Aerospace group EADS reported strong overall figures for the first half and a name change to Airbus.

In Germany, the giant industrial conglomerate Siemens named a new chief executive to restore credibility with shareholders.

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Feds grandstanding: NT govt

THE Northern Territory government is accusing the Commonwealth of grandstanding by demanding that it returns more than $18 million in allegedly misused funds.

Federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek sent a letter to the media intended for NT Health Minister Robyn Lambley, which Ms Lambley has labelled a pre-election stunt.

Ms Plibersek's letter, sent on Monday, demands the NT return by the end of August more than $18 million of Commonwealth health funding which was provided to build a 100-bed "medi-hotel" at Royal Darwin Hospital for the accommodation of bush patients needing treatment.

Instead, the facility is being used to house patients of the Country Liberal Party-led NT government's controversial mandatory alcohol rehabilitation scheme.

Under the new law, if a person is picked up by police three times in a three-month period for drunk and disorderly behaviour, they can be forced into the treatment program for up to twelve weeks.

Ms Plibersek told reporters in Sydney on Monday that she gave the NT government "many months" to explain why the facility was being used to "lock up alcoholics" instead of caring for patients needing surgery.

"The Northern Territory government have refused to do that," she said.

Her letter stated that the NT government "has unilaterally decided to use the facility for a purpose other than the one for which it was funded and built".

But Ms Lambley has slammed the letter as a politically-motivated attack.

"Tanya Plibersek's grandstanding isn't about what's best for the Territory, it's about what's best for the federal Labor Party weeks out from an election," she said.

"The use of the medi-hotel as an alcohol rehabilitation facility is not inconsistent with the intended purpose of the building to provide medical treatment to sick Territorians."

Ms Lambley said the facility is being used for 18 months to hold alcoholics on the program, until alternative facilities are built.

She said the NT "has no intention of repaying the money" because the federal government would ultimately return it to the Territory in other health funding.

If forced to pay, the mandatory treatment centre would stay where it is because the NT government would not be able to afford another site, Ms Lambley said.

In previous discussions, Ms Plibersek had appeared open to the idea of using the medi-hotel for alcohol treatment, she said, "but as the election has drawn nearer she has adopted a more combative stance".

Ms Plibersek wants the money returned to the health and hospitals fund so it could be used for health priorities in Darwin and Palmerston.

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Egypt crisis remains in stalemate

EGYPT is mired in political stalemate despite the diplomatic efforts of a top EU official, with the threat that protests will be forcibly dispersed hanging overhead.

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton flew out empty-handed on Tuesday, after three days of talks aimed at finding "common ground" between the army-installed interim government and supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi.

The rival camps appeared as entrenched as ever in their positions, despite her efforts which included Morsi's first visit since his detention hours after his July 3 ouster by the army.

The international community made clear it would continue to push for reconciliation, with the EU saying on Wednesday that its Middle East envoy would arrive later in the day to continue Ashton's efforts.

In Washington, two leading senators said the White House had asked them to head to Cairo to push for an "inclusive, democratic approach".

But on the ground, there seemed little sign of compromise.

Late on Tuesday, Morsi loyalists marched towards a military intelligence building in Cairo, in defiance of warnings from the army to avoid approaching its facilities.

The march passed off peacefully, with demonstrators stopping short of the building and returning to their main protest camp by the Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque.

The interior ministry has warned that the camp will be cleared soon, and tensions remain high after the deaths of 82 people at a pro-Morsi rally on Saturday.

On Tuesday, Ashton said she had a "friendly, open and very frank discussion" with Morsi at the undisclosed location outside Cairo where he is being held.

"Morsi is well," she told reporters after the two-hour meeting.

"He has access to information in terms of TV, newspapers, so we were able to talk about the situation and we were able to talk about the need to move forward."

Ashton said her discussions with Morsi and his supporters, and interim government officials were intended to "facilitate the bringing together of ideas."

"I don't come here to say somebody should do this, somebody should do that, this is your country," she said.

She met with army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, interim president Adly Mansour and vice president Mohamed ElBaradei, as well as a pro-Morsi coalition.

But in the wake of the talks, neither side appeared to have shifted their positions, with ElBaradei insisting Morsi would have no political role and his supporters continuing to demand his reinstatement.

"Mr Morsi failed but the Brotherhood continues very much to be part of the political process," ElBaradei said, adding that ending violence would be his first priority.

In Washington, Senator Lindsey Graham said he and fellow Republican John McCain would head to Cairo at the White House's request.

"The president asked Senator McCain and myself to go to Egypt next week, so we're trying to find a way to get there," Graham told CBS television.

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Philippine province hit by blackout

ABOUT a million people in the Philippines have endured an extraordinary blackout after a power provider cut electricity to an entire province over unpaid debts dating back 15 years.

Hospitals, hotels and an airport in Albay province were forced to run on emergency generators after power was severed on Tuesday afternoon, while businesses closed and residents struggled amid steamy, tropical weather.

"We could not sleep last night, it was very hot. I opened the windows and a screen door to get some wind inside but that allowed the big mosquitoes in," Jun Marana, a coach driver in the provincial capital of Legazpi, told AFP by telephone on Wednesday.

Marana said all the food in his refrigerator had spoiled, while it was difficult to buy more for his four children because many shops had closed.

The country's electricity spot market operator cut off the power to Albay's electricity retailer because of about four billion pesos ($A103.09 million) in bills that had accumulated over 15 years, the national government said.

The retailer, Albay Electric Co-Operative, is collectively owned by all power consumers in the province.

Local and national government officials accused Albay Electric's board of gross mismanagement in accumulating the debts.

The president of the national power provider, Philippine Electricity Market Corporation (PEMCI), said it had been forced to take the drastic action after years of unsuccessful negotiations with Albay Electric.

"How can we encourage investors if the distribution utilities like (Albay Electric) are consuming electricity without paying?" PEMCI president Melinda Ocampo told AFP.

"There is no free electricity."

Electricity supplies resumed to most residents in the province at 5:00 pm (0900 GMT) on Wednesday after negotiations between PEMCI and Albay Electric Co-Operative that were brokered by Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla.

But the 100 biggest consumers, including hotels, factories and department stores, were still cut off.

And Ocampo said power to the whole province would be turned off again in seven days unless Albay Electric began repaying its debt.

"If they cannot pay then we will cut them off," Ocampo said.

Ocampo rejected suggestions the company's actions could have put people's lives in danger, saying Albay Electric was at fault because it had agreed to have its debts restructured in 2010, then reneged.

Albay, one of the country's poorer provinces in the far east of the main island of Luzon, has 1.1 million residents.

Politicians and residents expressed deep anger that the debt crisis had led to such extreme action.

Legazpi mayor Noel Rosal said his city had lost more than 15 million pesos ($345,000) because of the blackout, largely due to businesses being forced to close.

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Switzerland looks into deadly train crash

SWISS authorities are investigating a head-on train collision in the west of the country that has killed one of the drivers and injured 26 other people.

The accident on a rail network regarded as one of the world's most reliable came as Spain was mourning the 79 victims of one of Europe's worst train disasters in recent years.

Two trains collided head-on late on Monday just outside the station at Granges-pres-Marnand, a small town between the Geneva and Neuchatel lakes in Switzerland's French-speaking region.

Daniel Antonez, a resident of nearby Moudon, said he heard the impact.

"It's one I often take. I'm sure I know some people who were on the train," he said.

Rescuers retrieved the body of a driver from one of the crumpled engines early on Tuesday and investigators were surveying the crash site.

Flanked by cornfields, the two small trains were still on the track on Tuesday, both engines locked into each other and lifted slightly off the ground as workers used beams to prepare to remove the wreckage.

"The management and employees of the CFF are shocked by the death of their colleague," the company said in a statement, offering its condolences to the man's family.

Newspapers splashed photos of the wreckage across their front pages, claiming that the early departure of one of the trains may be to blame.

The police made no comment on the possible cause of the crash but CFF boss Andreas Meyer was due to brief the press later on Tuesday.

"Work is continuing to clear the line completely. Technical investigations will continue over coming days," police said in a statement.

A total of 46 passengers had been on board, all of them Swiss, police said.

Swiss media quoted Guy Delpedro, the mayor of the small town of 1200 inhabitants, as saying that the low speed of the trains explained why more people had not died.

One train had been bound for Lausanne, 38 kilometres to the south, while the other was travelling north from the same city.

A CFF spokeswoman told AFP that the two trains should have crossed at the station, thanks to a track system that allows them to pass one another.

The crash occurred shortly before 7pm local time on Monday (0300 AEST Tuesday) and rescuers worked into the night under arc lamps, using special equipment to cut through the wreckage and reach the missing driver.

They retrieved his body at 1.30am (0930 AEST) on Tuesday, but it was not clear whether he had died on impact.

In total, 26 people were taken to five separate hospitals while those with more minor injuries were treated on site by the emergency services and volunteer medics.

The collision came in the wake of the July 24 tragedy in Santiago de Compostela, when a speeding train flew off the rails, killing 79 people. A crash in suburban Paris a week earlier killed seven.

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Italy court to decide Berlusconi's fate

The fate of former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi will be decided by Italy's Supreme Court. Source: AAP

ITALY'S top court is to begin crucial hearings for former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi that could end the billionaire tycoon's parliamentary career and risk upsetting the country's fragile coalition.

The supreme court is set to decide on Tuesday whether or not to confirm a one-year prison sentence and a five-year ban from politics in a long-running tax fraud case involving Berlusconi's media business interests.

"Judgment Day", reads a headline in Italy's top-selling Corriere della Sera daily, while La Stampa said in an editorial that the case was like "a giant boulder that is paralysing the entire political framework".

"This is more than a simple verdict," La Stampa said.

The final appeal hearing is expected to start later on Tuesday but Italian media reported that the actual verdict may come only on Wednesday and there is a possibility that the case could be adjourned until September.

The verdict will be a milestone in the history of legal woes and sex scandals that have dogged Berlusconi's 20 years on the Italian political scene including three terms as prime minister.

In other court cases, Berlusconi has been convicted of having sex with an underage prostitute, abusing his powers as prime minister and publishing a secret police wiretap to damage a political rival.

He denies all charges and is appealing against those rulings, accusing prosecutors of being politically biased and pursuing a vendetta against him.

Even if the court upholds Berlusconi's tax fraud conviction, the Senate would still have to vote to allow the sentence to be implemented since Berlusconi has a seat in the upper house of parliament.

Legal experts say there is virtually no chance of Berlusconi being sent to prison because of lenient sentencing guidelines for over-70s in Italy.

There is however a possibility that the media magnate could be put under house arrest in his luxury villa in Milan or placed in the care of social services.

The political ban would eject the 76-year-old from the Senate and prevent him from running for office.

Berlusconi could however remain as a figurehead leader of his centre-right People of Freedom party.

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Morsi 'well', says EU policy chief

The EU foreign policy chief held a two-hour meeting with ousted Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi. Source: AAP

EGYPT'S ousted president Mohamed Morsi is "well" and has access to news, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton says after meeting him at an undisclosed location.

"Morsi is well," she told reporters on Tuesday, adding that he had access to newspapers and television, and describing their talks as "friendly, open and very frank".

Ashton held two hours of talks with Morsi in the early hours of Tuesday, with sources telling AFP she left Cairo on a military helicopter.

She declined to say where Morsi was being held or to characterise his comments to her.

"I'm not going to put words in his mouth," she said.

"We had a friendly, open and very frank discussion," she added. "We talked in-depth."

Ashton arrived in Cairo on Sunday night for an intensive schedule of meetings with Egyptian government officials and opposition representatives.

Her visit came in the wake of the deaths of 82 people at a pro-Morsi rally in Cairo on Saturday morning.

She has urged an end to the bloodshed and a political transition that would include the Muslim Brotherhood organisation from which Morsi hails.

But she said on Tuesday that she was not in Egypt to push either side to take particular actions or to present an initiative.

"I'm not here to ask people to do things," she said, adding that she would be looking to find "common ground" between the sides.

"I don't come here to say somebody should do this, somebody should do that, this is your country," she said.

"The solutions are for the Egyptian people."

In Paris, France's foreign minister demanded on Tuesday that Morsi be freed, and condemned the deadly unrest in Cairo.

"We condemn the violence ... We call for dialogue and for the release of President Morsi," Laurent Fabius told reporters.

Morsi is being held on suspicion of crimes relating to his escape from prison during the 2011 uprising that overthrew president Hosni Mubarak.

His supporters have rallied daily for his reinstatement and on Monday marched from a key Cairo sit-in to several security headquarters.

The marches raised fears of fresh clashes, but protesters kept their distance from security forces and headed back to their protest tent city after the demonstrations.

In the eastern city of Ismailia, however, a security source said clashes between Morsi supporters and opponents broke out, injuring 18.

The Anti-Coup Alliance called for a million-man march later on Tuesday under the banner of "Martyrs of the Coup" to commemorate its dead at a rally in Cairo on Saturday.

It urged Egyptians "to go out into the streets and squares, to regain their freedom and dignity - that are being usurped by the bloody coup - and for the rights of the martyrs assassinated by its bullets".

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British female MP threatened on Twitter

British police are investigating violent and sexually explicit Twitter postings directed at an MP. Source: AAP

BRITISH police say they are investigating violent and sexually explicit Twitter postings directed at an MP in a growing row over threats to women on the social network.

Stella Creasy, an MP with the opposition Labour Party, faced a stream of abuse after supporting a feminist activist who was targeted for campaigning for an image of novelist Jane Austen to appear on banknotes.

Another MP said she too was receiving a barrage of offensive messages, while a man has been arrested and bailed over rape threats to feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez.

"This isn't about Twitter, this is about hatred of women and hatred of women who speak up," Creasy told BBC radio on Monday.

"Twitter needs to be explicit that sexual violence and sexual aggression will not be tolerated as part of their user terms and conditions."

High-profile women in Britain have long complained of online harassment, but the issue reached front pages after Criado-Perez said she received "about 50 abusive tweets an hour for about 12 hours" last week.

Scotland Yard said on Tuesday that police had received an allegation from an MP about "malicious communications" over comments on Twitter.

Creasy retweeted a series of tweets that included threats from accounts named "killcreasynow" and "eatcreasynow", which have now been suspended.

She said she was reporting the abuse to both Twitter and police.

MP Claire Perry, from Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative Party, likewise retweeted a string of message including threats of sexual violence and one that read, "please disappear into obscurity and/or alcoholism. or die, whatever."

"I am tempted to shut down my Twitter account given the trolling going on incl. to me -- but that would be giving in," Perry tweeted.

Perry has been advising Cameron on his plans to introduce an "opt-in" system for blocking internet pornography.

The abuse to Criado-Perez sparked a huge outcry among Twitter users and prompted more than 60,000 people to sign an online petition demanding the network introduce a "report abuse" button and review its rules on abusive behaviour.

Twitter has introduced a report button on tweets in its iPhone app and plans to bring it to other platforms.

But some users say the form to which it links is too complex and time-consuming for those receiving a barrage of abusive tweets.

In a blogpost titled "We Hear You", Twitter said on Monday: "We are not blind to the reality that there will always be people using Twitter in ways that are abusive and may harm others".

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Maharaja's daughters win $3.58bn case

AN Indian court has ruled that the daughters of a late maharaja should inherit his 200-billion-rupee ($A3.58 billion) estate because his will was forged more than 30 years ago, lawyers say.

The verdict in the northwestern city of Chandigarh ended a two-decade legal battle over the fortune of Maharaja Harinder Singh Brar, the ruler of the princely state of Faridkot who died in 1989.

Magistrate Rajnish Kumar ruled last Thursday that the will had been faked to award his vast property holdings and family heirlooms to a trust managed by one of his three daughters, his servants and lawyers.

"Since the will has been declared illegal ... the legal heirs of rajasahib (maharaja) are entitled to the property," a lawyer quoted the magistrate as saying in his ruling.

The two surviving daughters of the ex-ruler, including the daughter who managed the trust set up under the forged will, are the legal heirs.

The maharaja's third daughter, Maheepinder Kaur, died in 2001.

"We have won the case after 21 years," Vikas Jain, a lawyer representing one of the daughters excluded from the will, Amrit Kaur, said on Monday.

Amrit Kaur, who lives in Chandigarh, fought the battle against the "Meharwal Khewaji Trust" headed by her sister Deepinder Kaur who lives in the eastern city of Kolkata.

Media reports said the ruler was suffering from depression due to the death of his only son in a road accident when the will was purportedly fabricated by lawyers and his servants 32 years ago.

No one in his family was named as a direct beneficiary in the forged will.

His assets included forts, a palace, prime property in the capital, cash, jewellery and a nine hectare private aerodrome in the city of Faridkot.

Brar was an enormously wealthy Sikh ruler of Faridkot before India's independence from Britain in 1947.

After independence, 565 princely states either merged with India or with Pakistan through separate treaties and agreements.

The Indian government in 1971 through a constitutional amendment discontinued the practice of doling out lavish privileges and money to royal families.

Many of them, after losing their opulent and glamorous lifestyles, have converted their palaces and forts into hotels to make a living.

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Greek monks hurl petrol bombs at bailiffs

A GROUP of monks on Greece's monastic sanctuary of Mount Athos who are facing eviction have attacked court bailiffs with rocks and petrol bombs, according to civilian authorities on the peninsula in northern Greece.

No one was injured in the incident early on Monday outside the administrative offices of Esphigmenou Monastery, and no arrests were reported. The bailiffs retreated from the site.

Mobile phone video of part of the incident, taken by the rebel monks and seen by the Associated Press, showed the court-appointed bailiffs using a small earthmoving machine in an unsuccessful attempt to force their way into the grounds of the office at Karyes, the capital of the all-male sanctuary from where its 20 monasteries are run.

About 100 monks in the 1000-year-old Esphigmenou monastery have been involved in a years-old dispute with the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, over his efforts to improve relations with the Vatican.

The monks have defied court orders to leave the monastery and allow church-appointed replacements to take over the site and the Karyes offices about 25 kilometres to the south.

"According to the information we have received from the police, explosive materials were thrown at the bailiffs," Aristos Kasmiroglou, civilian governor of Mount Athos, told the AP.

"The law must apply to everyone. And all sides must safeguard the pious nature of the site."

The Esphigmenou monks - who argue that they are safeguarding centuries-old Orthodox traditions - have refused to leave the complex, and receive food and other assistance from supporters in other parts of Greece.

"They came in the morning and started banging on the doors," Esphigmenou monk Elder Savvas, who said he witnessed the incident, told the AP.

"We had warned them that if they provoked us, we would respond."

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Apple China supplier hires minors: NGO

THREE Chinese factories making Apple products impose excessive overtime and employ minors, a US-based advocacy group says, renewing scrutiny of labour practices by the US tech giant's suppliers.

The iPhone and iPad maker has faced pressure to better oversee often-poor manufacturing conditions in China since 13 workers for one of its suppliers committed suicide in 2010.

US-based China Labor Watch said in a report on Monday that three plants run by Pegatron Group violated standards set by Apple.

Apple's website says that these include no underage labour, overtime to be voluntary, and a maximum 60-hour work week.

China Labor Watch said the 70,000 employees at the three Pegatron sites averaged 66, 67 and 69 hours per week, and that "many workers" were aged under 18, some of them interns from vocational schools.

Overtime was mandatory during busy periods, it said, adding that employees at one site who refused to work extra hours once would lose the chance to do so for the rest of the month.

The report also described crowded dormitory rooms housing up to 12 people, insufficient fire escape routes and fines for behaviour such as "failing to tuck in one's chair after eating" and "absence from unpaid meetings".

It also said managers screened out job applicants who were pregnant or older than 35, and rushed through safety training.

Apple said in a statement it had audited Pegatron facilities 15 times since 2007 and found last month that their workweek averaged 46 hours.

It said it had acted on previous complaints raised by China Labor Watch and would "immediately" investigate claims in the latest report "that are new to us".

"We are proud of the work we do with our suppliers to uncover problems and improve conditions for workers," it said.

"Apple is committed to providing safe and fair working conditions throughout our supply chain."

China Labor Watch said it sent undercover investigators to the three factories and conducted nearly 200 worker interviews between March and July this year.

Pegatron Group, a Taiwanese company, could not immediately be reached for comment.

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Danone's Morocco unit lifts profit

FRENCH yoghurt and bottled water maker Danone SA says its first-half earnings rose 10 per cent after its takeover of a subsidiary in Morocco helped boost profit.

The company behind Dannon yoghurt and Evian water says it made 972 million euros ($A1.40 billion), up from 881 million euros a year earlier.

Earnings were boosted by Danone's February takeover of its Moroccan subsidiary Centrale Laitiere.

However, Danone said that on an underlying basis its profit slipped 4 per cent in the period with weak sales in Europe continuing to offset gains internationally. Rising raw material prices also cut into profit.

Danone is in the midst of a 200 million-euro cost-cutting effort aimed at reversing its falling profitability.

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