Australia celebrates 25yrs of Economic Boom without recession.

In the face of Nigeria economic recess,  other countries are celebrating economic success .. Read

FROM THE IRISH TIMES:

Australia's resource-rich economy expanded at its fastest annual pace in four years last quarter, clinching a remarkable run of 25 years without recession as surging exports more than made up for a patchy performance at home.

The local dollar held firm at $0.7662 after news gross domestic product (GDP) rose 3.3 percent in the year to June, up from around 2.9 per cent the previous quarter.

The value of all goods and services rose 0.5 per cent compared to the first quarter, when output climbed by an unusually strong 1.0 per cent. Growth in the quarter was bolstered by a pre-election spurt in government spending combined with modest gains in household spending and home building.

That helped offset another steep decline in mining investment, which has been dragging on the economy for more than three years now. For the year as a whole, international trade was the biggest prop to growth as the hundreds of billions spent on mining projects yielded a bounty of resource exports.

Trade accounted for no less than 2.2 percentage points of growth in the year to June. That strength in exports belied a much more mixed picture at home, where domestic final demand grew by just 1.2 per cent in the year and household consumption grew by 1.6 per cent.

The report also suggested the economy was not yet running hot enough to revive inflation, with the main GDP price indicator up only 0.3 pe ent for the year. "If we didn't have a low inflation problem in Australia then these figures would argue against a rate cut," said Shane Oliver, chief economist at AMP Capital Investors. "Inflation has been too low for too long and that could argue for the next rate cut in November," he added. "But I have to say it's a close call."