CANBERRA: Australia's government announced A$16.4bil (US$17bil) in new savings and tax measures over four years to protect a wafer-thin budget surplus for 2012/13, opening the way for the central bank to further cut interest rates as early as next month.
Releasing the government's mid-year budget update, Treasurer Wayne Swan said yesterday that gross domestic product (GDP) growth would be slower in the year to June 30, 2013, and come in at 3% compared with May's budget forecast of 3.25%, as the country's mining boom slowed.