Budget surplus running at $18bn so far this year, Australian government data shows

Australian treasurer Jim Chalmers. The federal budget has recorded a surplus of more than $18bn in the first 11 months of the fiscal year. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

The federal budget has recorded a surplus of more than $18bn in the first 11 months of the fiscal year, buoyed by a larger collection of revenues than forecast in the May budget.

The underlying cash surplus of $18.2bn so far is almost as large as the $22.1bn surplus recorded for all of the 2022-23 year, according to the government’s updated finances.