Chalmers to announce $6b budget boost as interest rates set to hit 15-year-high
Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers is set to announce a $6 billion budget improvement, showing a lower underlying deficit than previously forecast. This announcement precedes an expected 15-year-high interest rate hike by the Reserve Bank of Australia to combat stubborn inflation.
Why it matters
Cost-of-living pressures and rising interest rates are heavily straining Australian households, placing political pressure on the federal government.
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Share A A A Treasurer Jim Chalmers will reveal a $6 billion budget boost on Monday as he faces internal pressure to curb inflation ahead of the Reserve Bank’s likely decision to raise interest rates to a 15-year-high.
The final budget figures are expected to show that the underlying deficit is about $6 billion lower than the $28.3 billion initially forecast at the time of the budget in May.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers speaks before the release of the 2026 Intergenerational Report at the Australian National University in Canberra last week. AAP The government did not explain how the better result had come about and whether the revenue had come from the continued strength of the jobs market or commodity prices mostly outside the government’s control.
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