Australia will report a federal budget surplus for the first time in 15 years next week, Sky News reported, thanks to strong export prices and record-low unemployment.
(Bloomberg) — Australia will report a federal budget surplus for the first time in 15 years next week, Sky News reported, thanks to strong export prices and record-low unemployment.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers will announce a slim surplus for the fiscal year through June, Sky reported, citing government sources that it didn’t name. Future years, however, were expected to slip back into the red as a result of large spending pressures.
The government will release its 2023 budget on Tuesday night in Canberra. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher declined to confirm whether or not a surplus should be expected, in an interview with Sky News on Thursday.
“The Treasurer and I have been clear for some time now that there is a significant improvement in the short term,” she said. Further out periods, however, “remain a significant budget challenge.”
No government has delivered a surplus in Australia since the 2007-08 fiscal year. In his second budget, Chalmers will attempt to balance financial assistance to households with tempering stubbornly-high inflation.
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