Australia to deliver first budget surplus in 15 years, Sky News reports

AUSTRALIA will report a federal budget surplus for the first time in 15 years next week, Sky News reported, thanks to strong export prices and record-low unemployment.

The government will release its 2023 budget next Tuesday (May 9) in Canberra.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers will announce a slim surplus for the fiscal year through June, Sky News reported, citing government sources that it did not name. Future years, however, were expected to slip back into the red as a result of large spending pressures.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher declined to confirm whether a surplus should be expected, in an interview with Sky News on Thursday.

“The Treasurer and I have been clear for some time now that there is a significant improvement in the short term,” she said. Further out periods, however, “remain a significant budget challenge”.

No government has delivered a surplus in Australia since the 2007-2008 fiscal year. In his second budget, Chalmers will attempt to balance financial assistance to households with tempering stubbornly high inflation. BLOOMBERG