Australia lowers growth forecast due to COVID-19

CANBERRA, June 27 (Reuters) – Australia on Sunday lowered its forecast for both population and economic growth for the next 40 years due to the impact of the Covid 19 epidemic.

Canberra closed its international borders in March 2020 to prevent the spread of the disease.

The government says the country will reopen its borders to immigrants only when it thinks it can do so safely.

Australia now expects its population to rise to 38.8 million by 2061, which is expected to reach more than 40 million people from the last estimate of 2015. People in 2056.

Its population is currently 26 million.

“The economy will be smaller and the Australian population will be older than they were, which will affect our economic and financial performance,” Australian Budget Minister Josh Friedenberg said Monday.

Population growth has been a major driver of Australia’s economic growth over the past decade.

But with slower growth and an aging population, Canberra expects economic growth of 2.6% per year over the next 40 years, up from 3% in the previous forecast year.

(Report by Colin Bacchus, French edition by Matthew Protard)