Budget Deficit
2017-18: $18.2 billion (down from $23.6 billion in December MYEFO)
2018-19: $14.5 billion (down from $20.5 billion in MYEFO)
Return to surplus (“a modest balance”) in 2019-20 ($2.2 billion)
Spending
2017-18: $459.9 billion (up from $457 billion in MYEFO); 25.1% of GDP
2018-19: $484.6 billion ($480.1 billion in MYEFO); 25.4% of GDP
Revenue
2017-18: $445.1 billion ($437.1 billion in MYEFO, $404.3 billion in last year’s budget)
2018-19: $473.7 billion ($463.1 billion in MYEFO, $430.7 billion in last year’s budget)
Net debt
2018-19: $349.9 billion ($363.2 billion in MYEFO). This will be peak net debt (18.4% of GDP); it will decline to $344 billion in 2019-20.
Economic forecasts for 2018-19
GDP: 3% (unchanged from MYEFO)
Unemployment rate: 5.25% (unchanged)
CPI: 2.25% (unchanged)
Nominal GDP: 3.75% (down from 4%)
Terms of trade: -5.25% (-5%)
Household consumption : 3% (2.75%)
Dwelling investment: 1.5% (-1.5)
Wage price index: 2.75% (unchanged)
Optimistic? I’d call them downright delusional. This government has bitterly opposed wage rises for the low to middle income earners, & they have failed to get growth to 3% or get unemployment below 5.5%. Yet they expect to get to a surplus position whilst also handing back an extra $6.5bn to multinationals & billions of dollars to high income earners?!?!
The volatility of their estimates over the last 2 years shows how unreliable they are, & how dependant they are on one off revenue sources.
Thanks for that neat precis which I shall delight in putting in my files and reviewing it in the carsh, hold light of reality, come Election Day.