Australia’s private sector capital expenditure declined less-than- expected in the second quarter, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed Thursday.
Total new capital expenditure decreased 5.9 percent in the second quarter from the previous three months, when it was down by revised 2.1 percent. Economists had forecast a quarterly drop of 8.4 percent.
Investment on building and structures decreased 4.4 percent and equipment, plant and machinery investment slid 7.6 percent in the June quarter.
Year-on-year, private capital expenditure plunged 11.5 percent in the second quarter.
The less-than-expected fall in machinery and equipment investment and construction investment suggests that the contraction in GDP was not as deep as expected, Marcel Thieliant, an economist at Capital Economics, said.
The upshot is that the outlook for capital spending isn’t as gloomy as one would expect in the current environment, the economist added.
Investment in 2020-21 was estimated at A$98.62 billion, which was 12.6 percent lower than the estimate for 2019-20.
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