GDP growth falls to just 0.1% as household cutbacks put handbrake on Australia’s economy

A switch to a trade deficit in the March quarter cut almost a percentage point off Australia’s GDP growth. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

Australia’s economy all but stalled in the March quarter as households’ rising debt costs curbed spending, countering extra outlays from governments.

The country’s gross domestic product rose 0.1% in the first three months of 2024, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday. On an annual basis, the economy grew 1.1%.