FutureCommPR Explores Various Initiatives Aimed at Saving Small Businesses

A popular family-owned supermarket is being kicked out of a shopping centre and replaced by Woolworths, with the supermarket’s boss declaring “loyalty is dead”.

The inflation genie has escaped again, prompting experts to warn households face thousands more in costs and interest rate hikes.

A CEO has revealed the grim comments she receives that have absolutely nothing to do with the way she runs her business.

An elderly woman who was verbally abused by an Invasion Day protester says the incident exposed a glaring double standard.

Something odd is happening with the Beckham boys – and I’m not talking about Brooklyn refusing to speak to them.

Reports have emerged that Australia’s largest bank has an outage on its banking app, while another bank apologised for payment issues.

Cash-strapped mortgage holders are being warned they may need to find $2192 more a year, as inflation becomes “uncomfortably high”.

The Australian dollar has rocketed to its highest level since February 2023 amid chaotic global financial movement.

One in 3 Australians feel guilty about their 2025 spending as new research reveals the nation’s top financial priority has shifted in an “unexpected” direction.

NSW Premier Chris Minns has been roasted for celebrating “India Republic Day” before Australia Day on January 26.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's Services Producer Price Index (SPPI) rose one per cent in the fourth quarter (4Q) of 2025, maintaining the same rate of increase for the third consecutive quarter, said Statistics Department Malaysia (DOSM) today. Read full story

TOKYO/SINGAPORE: Oil prices fell about 2% on Thursday after the U.S. and Iran agreed to hold talks in Oman on Friday, easing concerns that a potential military conflict between them could disrupt supply from the key Middle East-producing region. Read full story

KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia remained in profit-taking mode as an AI-driven sell-off in Asian markets sent traders fleeing to safety. Read full story

TOKYO/TAIPEI: TSMC plans to mass produce advanced 3-nanometre chips in Kumamoto in southern Japan, TSMC CEO C.C. Wei said on Thursday, an investment local media reported was worth $17 billion as the Taiwanese firm seeks to meet soaring demand for AI chips. Read full story

JAKARTA: Indonesia's economy grew 5.39% on an annual basis in the October-December quarter of 2025, official data showed on Thursday, above a forecast by analysts and the highest rate since the third quarter of 2022. Read full story

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun has attended a U.S.-led multilateral meeting on critical minerals in Washington to discuss cooperation with partner countries to ensure stable and diversified supply channels, his ministry said Thursday. South Korea was among the 56 countries that took part in the U.S.-inaugurated Critical Minerals Ministerial meeting held Wednesday (U.S. time), including the Group of Seven nations and countries involved in mining, refining and manufacturing, according to the foreign ministry. U.S. participants included U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who highlighted Washington's efforts to diversify supply channels for critical minerals. Participating countries shared the need for cooperation among trusted partners as well as accelerating multilateral collaboration at a time of shifting supply channels and expanding geopolitical uncertainties, the foreign ministry said. With the launch of the ministerial meeting, the Minerals Security Part

WASHINGTON — South Korea will lead a new multinational initiative, launched under a U.S. push to beef up cooperation with allies on critical minerals supply chains, through June, the State Department said Wednesday, as Washington steps up efforts to counter China's formidable clout over key resources. The department made the announcement on Seoul's role for FORGE, or Forum on Resource Geostrategic Engagement, after the inaugural Critical Minerals Ministerial, a meeting aimed at reinforcing and diversifying supply chains for critical minerals key to the manufacturing of high-tech military and consumer products. "FORGE, which will be chaired by the Republic of Korea through June, will lead with bold and decisive action to address ongoing challenges in the global critical minerals marketplace," the department said in a fact sheet. "Understanding the benefits of working together and building on the MSP, FORGE partners will collaborate at the policy and project levels to advance initiatives that strengthen diversified, resilient, and secure critical minerals supply chains," it added. MSP is

The defense ministry has proposed to the United States that South Korea's military jointly manage parts of the southern half of the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, a source said Thursday. The proposal came as the South Korean government aims to secure control of civilian access to the 250-kilometer-long, 4-km-wide stretch of the DMZ. Currently, the U.S.-led U.N. Command (UNC) administers the military buffer zone as the south-side enforcer of the armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War. Amid the UNC's outright objection to Seoul's move, the defense ministry proposed a measure under which South Korea's military oversees entry to parts of areas located south of the barbed-wire fence within the DMZ. The South's fence technically runs alongside the southern boundary of the DMZ, or the Southern Limit Line (SLL), located 2 km south of the Military Demarcation Line, the inter-Korean border. But parts of the fence were installed north of the SLL to overcome geographic limitations for surveillance operations. The size of the area is known to account for ro

North Korea has launched a winter sports competition at home, state media reported Thursday, after the country failed to qualify for this year's Winter Olympics. The opening ceremony for the ice hockey, figure skating, skiing and two other winter sports competitions took place the previous day at an ice hockey rink in a sports village in the Mount Paektu district of Ryanggang Province, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. About 50 competitions across the five sports categories will be held, the KCNA said, quoting a speaker from the ceremony as calling the event an "important opportunity to advance winter sports skills" to a higher level. The sports village in the Mount Paektu district, situated on a hill at an altitude of about 1,600 meters, reportedly houses winter sports facilities, including ice rinks, ski slopes and accommodations. The local sports event comes as North Korea failed to qualify for any events at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, set to run from Friday through Feb. 22. The North last competed in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics in South Korea, dispatching a t

Korea's Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright reaffirmed the need to swiftly make progress in Seoul's efforts to secure civil uranium enrichment and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing rights and acquire nuclear-powered submarines, the foreign ministry said Wednesday. Cho had a meeting with Wright in Washington to discuss a range of issues, including the implementation of a joint fact sheet (JFS) that the two governments released in November to outline trade and security agreements from two summits between President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump in August and October. The JFS includes the United States' approval for Korea to build nuclear-powered attack submarines and its support for a "process that will lead to Korea's civil uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing for peaceful uses." "The two sides reaffirmed a shared understanding of the need to swiftly make concrete progress vis-a-vis the enrichment and reprocessing segment and cooperation over nuclear-powered submarines, which are part of the JFS," the ministry said in a press release. "F

This year marks the 140th anniversary of official diplomatic relations between Korea and France. Today’s vibrant exchanges are the result of decades of mutual learning and steady cooperation. When the first generation of Korean diaspora arrived in France in 1919, the environment was very different. Even decades later, when I arrived in 1992, few people knew much about Korea. Instead, China and Japan dominated public attention. Japan, in particular, enjoyed widespread popularity in France, driven in part by the country’s enthusiasm for anime and then-President Jacques Chirac’s interest in sumo wrestling. Still, sustained dialogue and exchanges gradually laid the groundwork for deeper cultural understanding between France and Korea. The global success of Korean cultural content such as “Gangnam Style,” “Parasite,” “Squid Game” and “KPop Demon Hunters” accelerated the spread of the Korean cultural wave, known as hallyu. In France, hallyu has evolved beyond a passing trend, becoming embedded in everyday culture. French consumers are now familiar with bibimbap and gochuja

A former Victoria Police senior officer has been accused of taking bribes following a probe by the state’s anti-corruption watchdog.

The top diplomat of Europe’s biggest economy has flagged “difficulties” as Canberra strives to lock in a major deal worth billions.

A man has been charged with terrorism after the alleged attempted bombing of an Invasion Day rally, the second alleged terror attack in just a few months.

The worker was killed on Wednesday afternoon at the remote gold mine in Central Australia.

A 27-year-old has been hit with hundreds of charges after allegedly grooming more than 450 children online over a seven-year span.

Penny Wong has been slapped with a tricky question as Labor ranks vow to protest the Israeli President’s visit to Australia.

One Nation’s newest recruit has made a bold call about Pauline Hanson’s leadership prospects.

A teenager charged over an alleged death threat towards Israel’s President has also been banned from contacting another world leader.

Australia’s flag bearers for the Winter Olympics opening ceremony on Saturday have been revealed, but it will be a bittersweet moment for one.

Pauline Hanson has accepted she’s got no chance of leading the nation on her own, revealing a wild option she’s considering instead.

A hero husband who was threatened by killer Joel Cauchi and lost his wife in the Bondi Junction massacre has delivered a touching message as the inquest findings are handed down.

Police in Sydney have arrested a man after it’s alleged he mimicked firing on people from the Bondi terror attack footbridge.

Fresh details have emerged about the Clune boys, whose parents were battling against extreme sleep deprivation, a source has said.

Hardware giant Bunnings has launched a new range as demand soars for affordable options in Australia’s dire housing shortage.

A 16-year-old boy has been charged after allegedly luring and sexually assaulting a younger teenager at a public toilet.

Billionaire Bill Gates says he regrets ever having dealings with Jeffrey Epstein, as he seeks to distance himself from the convicted sex offender.

Volunteers searching for a missing Belgian backpacker have revealed new theories days after human remains were found near where she vanished.

Tech billionaire Bill Gates has weighed in on Australia’s teenage social media ban, as Spain became the latest country to follow in the Albanese government’s footsteps.

The EU’s chief will visit this month amid pressure on Canberra and Brussels to close a deal that could make Australia billions.