Australia's GDP shrinks at record pace as coronavirus pushes country into recession

ECONOMIC GROWTH - SYDNEY. Australia suffered its worst economic downturn on record last quarter as it battled the coronavirus crisis, while fresh outbreaks threaten to upend an already bumpy road to recovery and pile pressure on the government to keep fiscal taps open.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday showed the country's A$2 trillion ($1.47 trillion) economy shrank 7% in the three months to end-June from a 0.3% decline in the March quarter.

This is the largest fall in quarterly gross domestic product (GDP) since records began in 1959. GDP declined by 6.3% from a year ago.

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The contraction, which was deeper than median forecasts of 5.9%, comes as Australia's second most-populous state of Victoria remains in a lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus while international borders are shut too.

More than a million people have lost their jobs since March when Australia shut down entire sectors of the economy, hitting private sector demand and investments.