Australia sees slowest annual economic growth in 30 years; GDP falls to 1.5 pc
CANBERRA: Australia has reported its slowest annual economic growth, excluding the Covid 19 pandemic period, in over 30 years.
Official figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Wednesday revealed that Australia's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 1.5% in the 2023-24 financial year, spanning from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024, down from 3.1% in 2022-23.
According to the ABS, this marks Australia's slowest rate of economic growth in a financial year, excluding the Covid 19 pandemic period, since 1991-92, when growth was 0.4% following the 1991 recession.
On a quarterly basis, the economy grew by 0.2% in the three months between the start of April and the end of June, matching the growth in the final three months of 2023 and the first three months of 2024. Australia's economy has grown for 11 consecutive quarters.
"The national accounts confirm the economy barely grew last quarter, reflecting global uncertainty, higher rates, and persistent inflation," Treasurer Jim Chalmers said in a statement posted on social media in response to the data. "It shows the pressures people are under and justifies our plan to fight inflation without smashing the economy and help people doing it tough."
The ABS reported that household spending was 0.2% lower in the June quarter than in the previous three months, detracting 0.1 percentage points from GDP growth, while government spending was up 1.4%. Services exports rose by 5.6% in the June quarter following falls in the previous two quarters.
By RSS/Xinhua
