Australia Benefits from Strong Exports Demand

The Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan said in Canberra on Monday the latest balance of payments data showed the country was continuing to benefit from strong demand for its exports despite global financial turbulence and slower world growth.

The current account, contained within data released on Monday, narrowed to 12.8 billion Aus dollars (10.8 billion U.S. dollars) in the June quarter, representing 4.5 percent of the March quarter nominal gross domestic product (GDP).

This is the lowest current account deficit - as a proportion of GDP - since the September quarter 2002, Swan said in a statement.

The narrowing of the current account deficit was driven by a strong turnaround in the trade balance, which recorded a small surplus in the June quarter, he said.

This was the first quarterly trade surplus since the March quarter 2002 and largely reflected a sharp increase in the price of coal and iron ore exports, Swan said.

The Rudd government is focused on addressing capacity constraints, boosting productivity and lifting international competitiveness so we can strengthen our export performance for the long term, he added.

Source: American Shipper