Australia plunges into recession after worst quarter on record

Australia experienced its worst financial downturn on document final quarter as it battled the coronavirus crisis, although fresh new outbreaks threaten to upend an currently bumpy highway to recovery and pile pressure on the governing administration to hold fiscal taps open up.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Studies on Wednesday confirmed the country’s A$2 trillion (£1.1 trillion) overall economy shrank seven for every cent in the 3 months to the conclusion of June from a .three for every cent decline in the March quarter.

This is the greatest fall in quarterly gross domestic product (GDP) due to the fact documents began in 1959. GDP declined by six.three for every cent from a yr ago.

The contraction, which was deeper than median forecasts of five.nine for every cent, comes as Australia’s second most-populous condition of Victoria continues to be in a lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus although intercontinental borders are shut much too.

More than a million people today have missing their positions due to the fact March when Australia shut down full sectors of the overall economy, hitting personal sector need and investments.