ABS data shows Australians maintained wealth during COVID
Lucas Radbourne | April 22, 2021 11:12am |
More on: Image source: Getty Images
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released its ‘Household Financial Resources‘ data on Wednesday, illustrating the importance of the Australian Government’s JobSeeker and JobKeeper programs to Australian household income from September 2019 to September 2020.
The data shows that Australian household income and wealth were stable throughout the worst of the pandemic. The ABS’ reporting period finished after the peak of Victoria’s COVID-19 crisis, where the state was plunged into one of the world’s harshest and longest lockdowns.
The ABS reported that, despite the Australian economy shrinking by 2.5% during the COVID recession, Australia’s average private household income remained stable at $2,117 per week compared to September 2019.
Far from embarking on spending sprees, the majority of those who accessed their superannuation early used the funds for paying off household bills or mortgages, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Tax cuts to flow as long term unemployed queue hits 26-year high
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One-off tax cuts will be delivered to 10 million working Australians in the May budget in a bid to boost the economy amid signs the number of long-term unemployed is rapidly climbing despite the nation’s rebound from the coronavirus recession.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is expected to confirm in the May 11 budget that the low and middle income tax offset will be extended for another year at a cost of $7.2 billion.
The government’s Low and Middle Income Tax Offset (LMITO) was the first part of its tax cuts, then kept for the 2020-21 financial year. Josh Frydenberg is expected to extend it again in the May 11 budget.
The corrected data has been independently reviewed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. (file pic)
Photo: 123RF
The error affected the median income for the year to June 2020, which is used to provide the thresholds for child poverty reporting.
Before the error was detected, the statistics showed there had been a statistically significant decrease over the last two years - prior to Covid-19 - across three of the nine child poverty measures.
The corrected figures now show a significant decrease across five of the nine measures.
The corrected data has been independently reviewed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
The mistake also affects household income and housing costs statistics.
The dole capitals of Australia have been revealed as having unemployment rates double the national average despite a national spike in job vacancies.
Australia s jobless rate fell to 5.6 per cent in March, the lowest since the start of the pandemic a year ago and job vacancies are at the highest level in 12 years.
But in some outer suburbs and satellite cities, unemployment is double that with poorer areas a 40-minute drive from Sydney and Brisbane struggling the most.
These areas having a higher concentration of hospitality businesses and were more dependent on immigration for economic activity before the pandemic.
Sydney s outer south-west covering Cabramatta and Liverpool has a jobless rate of 11.2 per cent, highlighting higher levels of labour market woes following the end of JobKeeper wage subsidies.