Economy set to worsen, with higher unemployment and weaker growth on the way, Jim Chalmers reveals

Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast

Jim Chalmers has revealed December’s mid-year budget update will project weaker growth and higher unemployment, as economists warn of a difficult six months ahead for the Australian economy.

Two days after a senior Reserve Bank official foreshadowed the potential for another interest rate hike in under two weeks’ time, the treasurer in a speech on Friday morning will say “higher inflation is putting people under pressure, tighter monetary policy is weighing on domestic activity, and we can see that in the softening of the labour market”.