Economy slows as government spending eases
Australia's economic growth has slowed to 0.2 per cent in the first three months of the year.
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics released on Wednesday showed the country's GDP grew at the slowest pace since the three months to June last year – and below economists' expectations for 0.3 per cent growth.
It comes after the economy picked up a bit of pace in the December quarter.
Extreme weather events dampened demand and weighed down exports, although household spending, which accounts for more than half of the country's economic growth, continued to grow at 0.4 per cent.
This was driven by an uptick in spending on essentials, including utilities during the warmer-than-average summer and food as Queensland households stockpiled in preparation for cyclone Alfred.
Data on Tuesday revealed government spending and net trade, other key components of GDP, also slipped, detracting from economic growth.
Household spending on discretionary items was also relatively slow following a stronger-than-usual retail sale period over Christmas.
The bureau's head of national accounts, Katherine Keenan, said the figures showed government spending, which has propped up the economy over the past two years, slowed sharply through the first three months of the year.
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