Cynthia Koons: Not only were [Australian] exports down, but imports declined too. Imports of goods for consumption fell 7%, reflecting caution in Australian households. Capital goods imports fell by 5%, a number that should be a particular concern for policy makers: A slowdown in purchases of machinery and equipment could be an early sign that investment in Australia’s resources boom is weakening.
via Heard on the Street: Australia’s Surplus Dreams Are Just That – WSJ.com.
The dreams will become nightmares when the debts upon which the maintenance of GDP over the period 2007-2011 were created. When did it ever make sense to borrow 20% of GDP to create 20% of GDP? The interest payments over a 13 year period will consume 20% of GDP. The government has no knowledge of how money is created or how debts are repaid. These are two fundamental principals of financial management. Let this decade be a lasting lesson to the people on how their country can be lost by leaving it in the hands of idiots.
Your joking right? A 20% gearing ratio at this stage of the global economic cycle is a dream for most countries in the world.