{"id":5810,"date":"2020-12-17T06:56:09","date_gmt":"2020-12-17T05:56:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedailyleaks.com\/?p=5810"},"modified":"2020-12-17T06:56:09","modified_gmt":"2020-12-17T05:56:09","slug":"australian-economy-rebounds-more-quickly-than-expected-amid-coronavirus-recession","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedailyleaks.com\/australian-economy-rebounds-more-quickly-than-expected-amid-coronavirus-recession\/","title":{"rendered":"Australian economy rebounds more quickly than expected amid coronavirus recession"},"content":{"rendered":"
The Australian economy is rebounding strongly from the economic havoc of the coronavirus recession, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says, but insists the road ahead remains challenging.<\/p>\n
Mr Frydenberg released his mid-year budget update on Thursday, revealing the record budget deficit will come in at below $200 billion, rather than the $214 billion forecast in October.<\/p>\n
The jobless rate is also now expected to peak at below 8 per cent.<\/p>\n
The improved numbers have been helped by savings on the cost of JobKeeper wage subsidies and a windfall from iron ore prices.<\/p>\n
“The Australian economy is rebounding strongly following the biggest economic shock since the Great Depression,” Mr Frydenberg said.<\/p>\n
ALSO READ: Australia’s economy has moved out of its first recession in almost 30 years, new figures show<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n “Australians are back\u00a0spending and they are back working,\u00a0and they are back moving freely\u00a0across the nation.”<\/p>\n The number of Australians reliant on the JobKeeper wage subsidies has been reduced from 2.2 million in the October budget to 1.6 million people.<\/p>\n The budget update also revealed that 85 per cent of the 1.3 million people who lost work or were stood down on zero-hours at the height of the pandemic are back at work.<\/p>\n SBCNews<\/a> said the unemployment rate is forecast to peak at 7.5 per cent in the first quarter of 2021, down from an expected peak of 8 per cent forecast in October.<\/p>\n Mr Frydenberg said parts of the economy continued to be impacted by the impacts of COVID-19.<\/p>\n “The road ahead is challenging – very challenging. We’ve not yet defeated the virus. It still is with us,” he said.<\/p>\n “Our recovery is very much dependent upon our continued success in containing COVID-19.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n ALSO READ: Australia refers China to the World Trade Organisation amid deteriorating diplomatic relations<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Labor’s treasury spokesperson Jim Chalmers said he believed the government’s big-spending budget in October had failed to deliver enough return for Australians out of work.<\/p>\n “They’ve racked up a trillion dollars in debt and they don’t have enough jobs to show for it,” he told reporters.<\/p>\n “The economy is recovering but it isn’t rebounding strongly enough or quickly enough.”<\/p>\n The budget update said the global outlook remains challenging as COVID-19 outbreaks and containment measures continue, and trade tensions impact Australia’s exports.<\/p>\n Australian exports of cotton, timber, rock lobster, beef, wine and barley have been caught up in trade disruptions this year imposed by China.<\/p>\n Mr Frydenberg said recent trade disputes with major trading partner China were “very serious issues.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n ALSO READ:\u00a0US sets 24-hour records with over 3,700 Covid deaths, 250,000 new cases \u2014 Johns Hopkins<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n “These are no doubt serious issues. The government is continuing to work very hard to identify new markets for our exports,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Finance and Trade Minister Simon Birmingham said the government didn’t “underestimate” the impacts of those decisions by China on individual businesses, sectors and the Australian economy.<\/p>\n “This budget update\u00a0reflects the fact there are\u00a0disruptions, it acknowledges the\u00a0risk that is there,” he said.<\/p>\n “But, of course, we also seek to minimise that risk by seizing the other opportunities available to exporters and farmers.”<\/p>\n The budget update included $3.2 billion to extend the coronavirus supplement to boost welfare payments by $150 per fortnight until March.<\/p>\n The supplement has been wound back from $550 since it was initially put in place in response to an escalation in the number of Australians out of work.<\/p>\n The government is also spending $1.5 billion over two years to secure a further 61 million doses of potential vaccines against the coronavirus.<\/p>\n It is also directing a further $1 billion towards the aged care sector, including for home care packages.<\/p>\n Another $128 million is going towards supporting the heavily impacted travel agency sector.<\/p>\n The deficit is expected to improve over forward estimates to $66 billion in 2023\/24.<\/p>\n “There is a light at the end of the tunnel, but there is still a very long way to go in Australia’s economic recovery,” Mr Frydenberg said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Australian economy is rebounding strongly from the economic havoc of the coronavirus recession, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says, but insists the road ahead remains challenging. Mr Frydenberg released his mid-year budget update on Thursday, revealing […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5811,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3,2],"tags":[1186,35,246,1111],"coauthors":[25],"class_list":{"0":"post-5810","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"category-latest-news","9":"category-top-news","10":"tag-australian","11":"tag-coronavirus","12":"tag-economy","13":"tag-recession"},"yoast_head":"\n