Treasurer tells Australians to be realistic about economic challenges

CABERRA: Responding to the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) projections forecasting the next five years will be the slowest for economic growth in more than three decades, Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Saturday said citizens should be realistic about future fiscal challenges.

Chalmers will in May hand down his second federal budget, which he said would aim to "strike the right balance between targeted cost-of-living relief, responsible fiscal management and laying the foundations for future growth", reports Xinhua news agency.

"Australians should be optimistic about the future of our country but realistic about the challenges we face, and how the slowing global economy will affect our own prospects," Chalmers was quoted as saying by the local media.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on Thursday said the world economy is expected to grow less than 3 per cent this year, with India and China projected to account for half of global growth in 2023.

"Growth remains weak by historical comparison, both in the near and medium term," Georgieva said in a speech in Washington, D.C., ahead of the IMF-World Bank spring meetings next week.

"India and China are expected to account for half of global growth in 2023. But others face a steeper climb," she said.

The Australian government has identified boosting trade with China and India as priorities.

The Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement came into effect at the end of 2022, eliminating tariffs on over 85 percent of Australia's goods exports by value to the South Asian nation.

Multiple Australian delegations were also sent to China in recent months in a bid to improve the relationship.