Major cities across Australia have celebrated the New Year with brilliant fireworks displays.
Sydney had eight-tonnes worth of pyrotechnics, with the centrepiece a rainbow tribute to the nation's historic same-sex marriage vote and the upcoming 40th anniversary of Mardi Gras.
Assistant Commissioner Mark Walton has praised the behaviour of the more than a million revellers who packed the harbour.
Thousands flocked to Federation Square in Melbourne for a 10-minute show involving 68 pyrotechnicians,14 tonnes of fireworks and 22 rooftops.
Brisbane was also able to dodge the threat of thunderstorms to enjoy the pyrotechnics, while Adelaide also welcomed in the New Year with fireworks in the C-B-D and Glenelg.
Hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders have taken to the country's streets and beaches to become the first nation to welcome 2018.
In Auckland, partygoers watched five minutes of nonstop pyrotechnics explode from the city's Sky Tower.
Many Japanese have celebrated the arrival of the Year of the Dog by praying for peace and good fortune at neighbourhood Shinto shrines.
While South Koreans have witnessed the tradition bell-tolling ceremony to usher in the new year.
In China's capital Beijing, President Xi Jinping (shee jin-PING) has used his New Year's speech to promise that China will play a vital role in foreign affairs.
