Qantas' big move amid tourism trend, car drives off cliff at beach, Canberra 'very confident' ahead of Trump inauguration

Plus the north of Western Australia has been battered by Tropical Cyclone Sean, with further warnings issued.

Qantas is ramping up flights to Japan as the Asian country solidifies its place as Australia's favourite destination. Source: Getty
Qantas is ramping up flights to Japan as the Asian country solidifies its place as Australia's favourite destination. Source: Getty

Yahoo's live news blog for Monday, January 20 has now concluded. Qantas is moving to meet demand of Australian travellers as Japan cements itself as the country's most popular destination for tourists.

Channel Nine presenter Tony Jones has apologised for his remarks about 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic live on air. The Serbian star refused to take part in a post-match interview on court after accusing Jones of mocking him and his fans.

See all of the day's updates below.

LIVE COVERAGE IS OVER14 updates
  • Veteran Nine presenter calling it a day after 17 years

    Veteran Aussie journalist and news presenter Andrew "Lofty" Lofthouse has announced his retirement from 9News after 17 years with the network.

    Lofthouse announced his decision on Monday, citing health reasons for his departure.

    He first joined 9News Queensland as a weekend presenter, before transitioning into the weekly spotlight a year later where he has been a “daily constant” in the lives of viewers, 9 said in a statement.

    9News Queensland News Director Brendan Hockings called Mr Lofthouse a “rare gem” and “exceptional talent”.

    “He is the journo who offers to carry the tripod. The colleague who makes you a cuppa. The news anchor who doesn’t see himself as any more than part of the team,” Hockings said.

    “The example he has set as a newsman is the gold standard."

    Lofthouse said it has been an "amazing privilege" working at the network.

    “I’m currently dealing with a bit of a health issue so now is a good time for me to pull back and slow down a little after a dream career,” he said.

    - With NCA NewsWire

  • Major change for hundreds of servos

    The Victorian government has announced a major cost-of-living shake-up, forcing servos across the state to announce fuel price changes 24 hours in advance, which are then locked in for a day.

    “You know how much fuel prices fluctuate – under our plan, you can find out tomorrow’s fuel price at every single servo on your route to work and make your decisions accordingly,” Premier Jacinta Allan told reporters on Monday.

    Allan said drivers could save hundreds of dollars a year from the change.

  • Do these change your shopping habits?

    Some examples of how products are being stored away from thieves. (Source: 7News/Facebook)
    Sights like this are becoming more common in Australia. Source: 7News/ Facebook

    More and more products are ending up behind security casing or fitted with locks amid a rise in supermarket theft.

    But is it a mistake from the big supermarkets like Coles and Woolworths? QUT retail expert Professor Gary Mortimer says it could be.

    "It's a tough situation because obviously you've got retailers that want to protect their products, but the more difficult you make it for a customer, the less the customers is probably willing to buy it and they'll go to a retailer where it's easier to make that purchase if you lock away," he told Yahoo Finance.

    So what do you think? Have your say below.

  • Djokovic's skin 'a little thin', former champion says

    There seems to be plenty of division on the Tony Jones controversy, with Nick Kyrgios, a friend of Novak Djokovic, the latest to criticise the Channel Nine presenter, calling the remarks about the Serbian champion and his fans "putrid".

    However John Alexander, a former Australian Open doubles winner, says Djokovic "hasn't reacted well" to the incident.

    "He's not understood our humour, so there's a bit of a clash of cultures. But he's had a bit of a rough go here for a guy that's won the tournament 10 times, there's some crowd that really like to get at him and crowd behaviour [that's] sometimes unruly," he told the ABC Tennis Podcast.

    "You layer that and then something like this and he's not reacted well. He's asked for respect time and again and I think the skin has just worn a little thin through the experiences that he's had."

  • Another bank announces store closures

    It's a trend that doesn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon.

    The Bank of Queensland is the latest bank to shut some of its stores as the shift to a cashless society rolls on. The bank is closing 14 stores as it "embraces" digital banking.

    The move has been branded as "shameful" by the Finance Sector Union (FSU), who warned that customers who depend on in-person banking will be left in the dust.

    "Australians rely on local bank branches and no amount of corporate spin from banks can deny that fact," the FSU's National Assistant Secretary Jason Hall said.

    Read all about it from Yahoo Finance here.

  • Trump dances with Village People before inauguration

    Donald Trump has held a pre-inauguration "victory" rally before becoming president of the US tomorrow, and unsurprisingly it turned out to be a pretty raucous occasion.

    Trump's Make America Great Again faithful were out in large numbers and those lucky enough to make it inside witnessed Trump wrap up his speech dancing with the Village People, who sang “YMCA,” the anthem that closed out nearly all of Trump’s campaign rallies. Take a look at how that went below.

    President-elect Donald Trump dances with The Village People at a rally ahead of the 60th Presidential Inauguration, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
    President-elect Donald Trump dances with The Village People at a rally ahead of the 60th Presidential Inauguration. Source: AP
    President-elect Donald Trump, left, dances as the Village People perform
    Trump delivered some of his trademark moves. Source: AP
    WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 19: President-Elect Donald Trump greets the Village People on stage at his victory rally at the Capital One Arena on January 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.  Trump will be sworn in as the 47th U.S. president on January 20. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
    The crowd were loving it. Source: Getty
  • Boris Becker calls Tony Jones moment 'very disturbing'

    Former Grand Slam winner Boris Becker has had his say on the Tony Jones controversy, calling his remarks about Novak Djokovic and Serbian fans as "very disturbing behaviour".

    Among Jones' remarks was a suggestion to 'kick him out', which has widely been interpreted as a nod to his detainment in Australia over his visa and vaccination status.

    Becker took to X to ask whether Jones would still be in a job after the moment, which Djokovic called insulting. Jones appeared on Channel Nine's coverage on Monday, with the network standing by the veteran presenter for now.

    Jones insists he apologised to Djokovic over what he says was his idea of a joke before he refused to give an on-court interview over the incident.

  • Aussie towns bunkering down as tropical cyclone strengthens

    Communities are bunkering down on Australia's western coast as eastern states deal with the fallout from damaging storms and continuing rain.

    Tropical Cyclone Sean was declared on Sunday north of the Pilbara Coast in Western Australia, with the category two storm expected to strengthen, but remain off the coast.

    The storm was moving at 16km an hour on Sunday evening with sustained winds of up to 95km/h and gusts of up to 130km/h.

    The cyclone has halted iron ore exports across much of the Pilbara, home to about 43 per cent of the global iron ore trade and 7.5 per cent of global LNG trade.

    A storm tide was expected between Port Hedland and Exmouth as the cyclone progressed.

    A cyclone emergency warning was issued for Barrow Island on Sunday evening with residents told to shelter indoors and stay in the strongest part of the building.

    Barrow Island has a population of 45 people.

    A watch and act is still in place for areas from Mardie to Ningaloo, with wild winds expected to continue through to Monday.

  • Women 'lucky to be alive' after tree falls on them

    Two women have been crushed by a fallen tree as wild storms battered Sydney and wider NSW over the weekend.

    The women, aged 54 and 70, became trapped beneath the large tree that toppled at a home in Pymble, in Sydney’s upper north shore, just before 4pm on Sunday.

    It reportedly took firefighters more than an hour to free the pair from beneath the tree.

    The two women were seriously injured. Picture: Channel 7
    The two women were seriously injured. Picture: Channel 7

    The 54-year-old suffered injuries to her shoulder, chest and leg, and the 70-year-old had back injuries.

    Both were transported to North Shore Hospital in serious conditions.

    A man in his 60s was also hit by the tree but suffered only minor injuries.

    The incident happened on the back-end of a week of storms which have lashed much of coastal NSW.

    A NSW Ambulance spokeswoman told Channel 7: “Given where they were standing and the limbs of the branches, they were very lucky”.

    - NCA NewsWire

  • Plenty of waiting around for smelly flower to bloom

    Hundreds of people queue on Sunday to get a close look at the Corpse Flower. Source: Kristen Murphy - Facebook
    Hundreds of people queue on Sunday to get a close look at the Corpse Flower. Source: Kristen Murphy - Facebook

    There have been huge queues over the weekend as people flock to Sydney's Botanical Gardens to catch a glimpse of its soon-to-bloom Corpse Flower.

    The extremely rare event, which can take 15 years to happen again, is predicted to happen in the next 48 hours or so, has drawn huge crowds in person and online where it is being livestreamed. Unfortunately for those who have visited so far, there has yet to be any real movement.

    A blooming Corpse Flower in Geelong last year made national headlines due to its popularity with intrigued visitors who had been warned about the flower's putrid smell.

  • High supermarket prices down to Albo, Dutton argues

    Opposition leader Peter Dutton says one of the reasons Australians are paying more at the supermarket is Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's failure to get to grips with electricity prices.

    "We'll make sure we get energy prices down, and we've got a plan to do that," Dutton said in a pre-election pitch while addressing reporters.

    "At the moment, Australians are paying way too much for their electricity. It's not just them - it's the local IGA store, it's the local farmer, the manufacturer, because they're paying more for their cold storage, which is why? Because of Labor's failed energy policy.

    "You're paying more when you go to the checkout to buy groceries."

  • Qantas jumping on Japan boom

    Qantas is answering the calls of Australians and is adding a new route to what has become the most popular tourist destination for Aussie tourists.

    Qantas has confirmed it will add direct seasonal flights from Sydney to Sapporo’s New Chitose Airport as Australians continue to flock to Japan’s snowfields, The Daily Telegraph reported.

    It comes as the number of visitors from Australia to Japan grew 50 per cent in the last year, with 920,200 people making the trip over, data from the Japan National Tourism Organisation shows.

    Jason Murphy previously explained for Yahoo Finance that a weak Japanese yen is one of the driving forces behind the boom, offering Australians a cheap holiday outside of Tokyo.

    There will be three new flights a week and will commence at the end of the year.

    Australian Tours and Holidays general manager Gina Gaw told the publication she believes the route will "boom".

    “It’s much more affordable there. For example, a simple bowl of ramen in Tokyo is $20. But in Sapporo, you can get one for $5," she said.

  • Car drives off cliff onto beach

    A car has driven off a cliff in Adelaide, landing on a beach 50 metres below.

    Two people inside the car, a 30-year-old female driver and 30-year-old male passenger were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries on Sunday night.

    Police continue to investigate the incident at Maslin Beach.

    The car on the sand after the single vehicle crash. Source: 7News
    The car on the sand after the single vehicle crash. Source: 7News
  • Albanese government 'very confident' Trump supports $368b investment

    Defence Minister Richard Marles says he is "very confident" Australia's military pact AUKUS with the US and UK will continue as planned as Donald Trump becomes US president once again this week.

    "We can draw confidence from this because AUKUS is in the strategic interests of the United States as it, of course, is in the strategic interests of Australia and the United Kingdom," he said.

    "That's why, fundamentally, people support it across the political spectrum, in all three countries, and why we feel very confident about its progress over the next four years."

    Concerns have been raised over the increasing pressure the US submarine industrial base has come under, in addition to the president-elect's position on the deal struck under the Biden administration. Australia has invested heavily in the AUKUS submarine deal, with $368 billion expected to have been spent in a bid to combat China's growing dominance in the Indo-Pacific.

    Chinese state media did its best to stir up trouble, suggesting Australia was sacrificing its own interests for the US.

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