Australian PM has now declared victory in the 2016 elections but faces a tough time ahead 10 July 2016
- opposition Labour Party leader Bill Shorten has conceded defeat
- votes are still being counted but the Liberal-Coalition is expected to win enough seats to govern
coalition still remains short of the 76 seats it needs to claim a majority in the lower house, the House of Representatives but it should secure at least 74, and also has the support of three independent and minor party politicians
It's not going to be easy for Turnbull and getting his agenda passed through the Senate will be a precarious and uncertain process with some in-house fighting already underway. Independent MP Bob Katter has already indicated that he will withdraw his support from the government if it engages in what he sees as "union bashing".
On Thursday ratings agency Standard & Poor's lowered Australia's credit rating outlook from stable to negative, warning the country could lose its AAA rating unless it undertook budget repair.
Voting may not be finally completed until August given the stringent verification process and sheer enormity of the Australian landscape. The BBC has more on this here and other election analysis.
The Aussie $ may take some comfort from the initial result being declared but the on-going fragility of the government will be an ever-present concern.
Australian PM Turnbull may not be smiling for long
