Received

The family of an Australian man killed in a Nepalese plane crash say he lived life to the fullest, and have thanked friends and relatives for helping them through a difficult time.

Myron William Love from Sydney was killed when a Yeti Airlines plane went down on Sunday en route to Pokhara from the nearby capital Kathmandu.

The 29-year-old was identified as a casual teacher from Bronte and an avid surfer, cyclist, photographer and traveller.

His family described him as a rock who always lived life to the fullest.

"He has put so much into his short life that most of us couldn't fit into our lifetime," the Love and Bailey families said in a statement.

"We would like to express our deep gratitude for the amazing support shown to us by our family and friends in this time of need.

"We do request at this time that you offer us peace and privacy for us to grieve, and deal with this tragedy."

The cause of the crash remains unknown, with clear weather reported, but the plane's black boxes have been located.

A friend of Mr Love's took to Instagram to pay tribute to "a truly kind, fun, energetic man we will forever love".

"It is with extreme sadness to say we have lost one of the best humans I have ever known," a Sydney-based artist lesjak_atton posted.

"Myron was one of the loves of my life. I send all my love to those who need it right now."

Rescue efforts continued in Pokhara on Tuesday morning, with two bodies yet to be recovered, Nepal's ambassador to Australia Kailash Pokharel told ABC Radio National.

"This is very tragic and my heart goes to all the victims and their families," he said.

A police official in Pokhara told Reuters rescue personnel were using ropes to descend into the gorge where parts of the plane fell and were in flames.

As of early Tuesday morning Australian time, Nepali authorities had recovered 70 bodies from the plane that was carrying 72 people.

Flights were resuming to normal service across Nepal on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday tweeted that the crash was "incredibly sad news".

The Yeti Airlines crash is the nation's deadliest since 1992 when a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A300 crashed into a hillside, killing 167 people.

Almost 350 people have died in plane or helicopter crashes in Nepal since 2000.

Australia's Smartraveller website noted a number of small airplanes had crashed in recent years, especially in monsoon season, and warned travellers of aircraft safety concerns.

"Due to safety concerns, all airlines certified by Nepali regulatory authorities are banned from operating in Europe," it noted.

with Reuters

© AAP 2023

The federal government is hopeful wages will continue to grow strongly even as interest rate hikes take the heat out of the economy and stamp down inflation.

Pay packets are growing at the fastest rate in more than a decade as the strong labour market continues to put upwards pressure on wages.

Wages are increasing by about three per cent annually, notably higher than the 2.3 per cent average growth in the past decade.

But sky-high inflation is eroding these gains, with wages contracting at a rapid rate when accounting for the rising cost of living.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said real wage growth is anticipated next year as inflation moderates and wage growth remains robust.

"The wages growth that we're seeing in the economy is something that we hope we can sustain and obviously inflation will moderate over time," he told ABC News on Tuesday.

"So to the extent we can do something meaningful on both sides of the equation, we'll get real wage growth in our economy."

However, he said achieving real wage growth relied on unpredictable inflation forecasts.

New Treasury analysis of Australian Bureau of Statistics data found wages for the lowest skilled occupations grew 2.3 per cent in the three months to September but just 1.2 per cent for the most skilled workers.

The industrial umpire's decision to lift the minimum wage boosted wages in this category for the September quarter.

The December quarter wage price index will be released on February 22.

Workers may be waiting a while for higher real wages but consumers are still feeling optimistic about 2023.

Consumer sentiment lifted in January, with the Westpac-Melbourne Institute index gaining five per cent to 84.3 points in January, from 80.3 points in December.

While it was the largest monthly rise in the index since April 2021, Westpac chief economist Bill Evans said this might be because there was no central bank interest rate rise this month.

Westpac expects the Reserve Bank board to continue with its interest rate policy tightening at its first meeting for the year on February 7.

More broadly, Mr Evans said consumer sentiment was still depressingly low despite the apparent improvement in January.

"The January read is in the bottom 10 per cent of observations since the mid-1970s," he said.

CBA Economics' Harry Ottley said sentiment was particularly depressed across indicators that sampled the respondent's financial health, such as family finances compared to a year ago and time to buy a major household item.

He also said forward-looking components performed better than current conditions.

"This indicates that what the RBA does and says impacts how consumers feel about the future," Mr Ottley said.

The ANZ-Roy Morgan weekly consumer confidence index released on Tuesday also pointed to subdued sentiment.

© AAP 2023

The Australian music world is mourning singer and ARIA Hall of Famer Renee Geyer after her death from complications following hip surgery at the age of 69.

Melbourne-born Geyer, one of Australia's most respected and successful soul singers, was discovered to have inoperable lung cancer while being treated in hospital.

She died surrounded by family and friends, her record label Mushroom Records announced on Tuesday.

"Naturally, we are all utterly devastated," a statement said.

"Just last month, Renee sang to a full house and was looking forward to another busy year ahead doing what she loved most.

"She lived her life as she performed - to the fullest - and her passing leaves a giant void in the Australian music industry."

Geyer fronted a number of bands in the 1970s, including jazz-rock group Sun, before beginning her three-decade solo career.

In 1973, the first of her 15 studio albums was released.

But it was her 1974 cover of the James Brown classic It's a Man's Man's Man's World that launched her to a mass audience.

The singer was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2005 and became the first woman to be inducted into the Music Victoria Hall of Fame in 2013.

She also received the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award at the Australian Women in Music Awards in 2018 and appeared on the ABC's music quiz show Spicks and Specks.

"Beloved and respected by so many, Renee Geyer was a force of nature and a national treasure," Mushroom Records said.

"The world is a duller place for her passing."

Geyer continued to perform and release music after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009, with her last album released in 2013.

She was spared a criminal conviction in 2017 over an abusive and intimidating racist rant in 2015 that caused a Sydney hotel receptionist to cry and fear for her safety.

It wasn't her only time fronting court, twice avoiding convictions for careless driving after two car crashes in Melbourne.

A 2013 poll ranked her the seventh-best Australian voice of all time.

Fellow soul singer and friend Kate Ceberano said Geyer carved the word woman into the psyche of the Australian music mentality.

"You strutted into our hearts and lives with your soul in your sleeve," she wrote on Facebook.

"Renee the powerful, the diva, the brutal, the original, the temperamental, the stellar, the shapeshifter, the original, the unforgettable, the irreplaceable Renee!"

Australian music legend Marcia Hines described Geyer as a game changer, a soul diva, her sister in song and possessing one of the greatest voices she has ever heard.

Geyer sang backup vocals on a number of Hoodoo Gurus albums, prompting the band to post on social media she had changed all their lives for the better.

"Renee was a fiercely original talent who carved out a huge legacy in Australian music," the band posted.

A memorial for Geyer will be held at a later date.

© AAP 2023