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Australia Treasurer Warns of ‘Confronting’ Outlook Before Budget
(Bloomberg) -- Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers warned of “complex and confronting” global economic conditions as he prepares to head to Washington for a Group of 20 meeting and about a month out from handing down his nation’s annual budget.
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Chalmers will visit the US this week together with Reserve Bank Governor Philip Lowe for the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors’ meeting and the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings. The treasurer, in a statement, highlighted the global economic uncertainty as he puts together his budget to be delivered May 9.
“Higher interest rates have exposed vulnerabilities in parts of the international banking system, adding to the already significant challenges of persistent inflation,” he said. “The IMF is now forecasting the weakest five year period for global growth in more than three decades.”
Chalmers, who has been in office for just under a year, is trying to restrain spending at a time when households are struggling with high inflation and a jump in interest rates. The RBA has lifted borrowing costs by 3.5 percentage points since May 2022 and paused this month amid signs that consumer prices and economic momentum are showing signs of cooling.
“Difficult and uncertain times like these demand more engagement with the world not less,” Chalmers said of the coming trip.
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