On the 6th of September, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released the Australian National Accounts: National Income, Expenditure & Product for the June 2023 quarter.

The release provides data on how the national economy is tracking and includes some noteworthy items, including that:

• the economy grew 0.4% during the June quarter and 3.4% over the 12 months to June. This was the seventh successive quarter of economic growth.  Whilst the economy grew, it was off the back of population growth and we have actually entered a ‘per capita recession’ with GDP per capita falling 0.3% off the back of a 0.3% fall in the March quarter.
• Labour market tightness has continued with the unemployment rate at 3.5% in June.
• Australians worked more hours with a 2.4% increase in time spent at work on the prior quarter.  Excluding during the COVID-19 pandemic, this has been the fastest quarterly increase on record.

• Inflation has continued to moderate with the CPI rising 0.8% in the June quarter and 6.0% over the last 12 months. This was the second consecutive quarter of lower inflation, which was down from the peak of 7.8% seen in the December 2022 quarter.
• Households spent $82.8b on mortgage interest during the year. This was almost double last year’s amount.
• Discretionary household spending fell 0.5% in the June quarter, being the third quarterly fall in a row.
• Wages rose in response to the tight labour market, but cost of living pressures meant the household saving rate continued to fall.
• Travel exports were at 88% of pre-COVID levels.  Australians also spent an extra 11.2% on international travel during the quarter, with significant increases to European destinations such as Italy, Portugal and Greece.
• Construction of new apartments rose strongly, particularly in Sydney and Brisbane. However, total investment in dwellings fell 0.2% during the quarter.

An understanding of how the economy is tracking is important for making sound business and investment decisions, particularly when conditions are more challenging as is currently the case.

We encourage readers to keep an eye on the regular releases from the ABS as a reliable source of data to help make robust predictions about what is coming up ahead, and how best to respond.

If you are interested in discussing the current outlook and what it means for business and investment, please get in touch.

Sky Accountants Ballarat

Phone: 03 5332 8855

Office Address: 902 Howitt Street, Wendouree, Victoria 3355, Australia

Postal Address: PO Box 2234, Bakery Hill, Victoria 3354

Sky Accountants Gisborne & Macedon Ranges

Phone: 03 5428 1400

Office Address: 45 Hamilton Street, Gisborne, Victoria 3437, Australia

Postal Address: PO Box 270 Gisborne Victoria 3437