‘Slowest Annual Growth Since COVID-19’: Australian Economy Grows 1.5 Percent in a Year

The nation’s economy grew just over 1.5 percent in the 2023 year, statistics from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) show. Australia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose from $600.5 billion (US$396.47 billion) in December 2022 to $609.8 billion in December 2023. The ABS described this movement as the “slowest annual growth rate since the COVID-19 pandemic.” The statistics show the economy grew 5.4 percent in 2021 and 2.4 percent in 2022, but fell 0.4 percent in 2020. In the December quarter, Australia’s GDP lifted 0.2 percent from $608.3 billion to $609.8 billion, the ABS stats reveal. Household spending increased just 0.1 percent in the December quarter, with a higher outlay in essential categories and less spending on discretionary items....