Australia's upcoming budget will predict the creation of 500,000 new jobs in two years, Treasurer Wayne Swan wrote in a regular economic note issued on Sunday. Swan said that the May 10 budget, which covers the fiscal year from July 2011 to June 2012, "will forecast Australia's employment growth to continue, with a further 500,000 jobs expected to be created by June 2013".
He said that despite the global economic crisis, 750,000 jobs had been created in Australia since the Labour government came to power in 2007, contrasting this with the loss of millions of jobs in the United States in the same period. Economists are predicting a tight budget following a series of natural disasters including widespread floods and a powerful cyclone that hit the country's north-east.
At the same time, the Australian dollar has soared in value to levels not seen since it was floated in 1983, amid strong Asian demand for Australia's commodity exports, especially from mining.
Australia avoided recession during the crisis by spending a big budget surplus amassed by the previous conservative government. The government has committed itself to getting the budget back into surplus by the 2012-13 fiscal year.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.