New South Wales premier Gladys Berejiklian announced the "difficult" decision, telling the city's population of five million it was time to "bunker down"
Ardern confirmed New Zealand was dealing with the highly transmissible Delta variant linked to the outbreak in Australia that authorities have so far been unable to contain
Four of the five people that died were unvaccinated while one had at least one dose, New South Wales state health authorities said, as they implored residents to get inoculated as early as possible
Sydney, home to a fifth of Australia's 25 million people, was plunged into lockdown on June 26 as a Delta variant outbreak persuaded officials to tighten restrictions in a country
The Conference Board's monthly report showed Americans increasingly upbeat about the economy and their job prospects, putting aside worries over rising prices
Daily cases have remained in single digits for the last nine days in Victoria while other states and territories have effectively eliminated the virus.
On currency markets, the pound hit a more than three-year high as Britain's vaccine rollout continues and the country announced just one coronavirus-related death Monday, the lowest since the pandemic began.
Rainfall records were forecast to continue tumbling in the coming days as the deluge spreads into the state's northwest, and further north into Queensland state.