Sydney - Australia's Macquarie Group Ltd warned Thursday that full-year profit would halve to 900 million Australian dollars (585 million US dollars) from 1.8 billion Australian dollars in the past fiscal year.

The homegrown investment bank's first profit fall in 17 years mostly reflected asset write-downs of 1.1 billion Australian dollars in the first half of the fiscal year, which ends March 31, and an expected 900 million Australian dollars in the second half.

Sydney - A family's snapshot of an orphaned baby koala taking refuge from Australia's heat wave in a bucket of water made it into newspapers worldwide.

The tiny marsupial, dubbed Star, was vying Thursday in the celebrity stakes with another plucky koala photographed in South Australia that flagged down a bunch of cyclists and demanded a swig from their water bottles.

"Even though we had heard that native animals had been suffering in the heat-wave conditions of the last week in Adelaide, it came as a surprise to be stopped on the side of the road during a bike ride by a thirsty young koala," reporter and participant Tim Noonan told the national broadcaster ABC.

Sydney - The fun of watching a James Bond film lies partially in spotting what the advertising industry calls product placement.

The brands on show be they of cars, watches, hotels or even locations have paid for the privilege of their association with the hunky celluloid spy and his world of glamour and sophistication.

Yet, it seems a bit of a cheat - cinemagoers, after all, have paid for their seats and have to sit through commercials even before the film begins - but Hollywood argues that the parade of products helps pay for the whiz-bang special effects.

Perth, Australia  - With Jelena Dokic finally putting her life back together both on and off the court, the surprise Australian Open quarter-finalist may soon be back in contact with her younger brother.

The estranged Dokic family is now spread around the globe, with former tennis bad dad Damir involved in a Serbian vineyard near Belgrade and his Croatian ex-wife Ljiljana now based in Sydney.

Sydney - Heavy rain brought by tropical cyclones caused flooding in much of north Queensland, news reports said Wednesday.

The sugar-cane town of Ingham north of Townsville was the worst affected with 50 houses under water and hundreds more damaged.

Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts told national broadcaster ABC some small towns might be cut off for weeks if more rain fell.

"The water seems to be staying up, it's not getting away, so we just hope that (another) cyclone doesn't form," he said.

Karachi, Feb. 4 : It's highly unlikely that Cricket Australia (CA) would allow its national cricket squad to tour Pakistan amidst the deteriorating security conditions in the country.

According to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ijaz Butt, the Australians are skeptical of visiting Pakistan because of security fears.

Butt also made it clear that the PCB is ready to host the Kangaroos at any neutral venue, and is in discussions with the Australian Cricket Authorities to finalise the venue and the dates.