Australia’s longest-serving Treasurer. Peter Costello delivered 12 budgets — 10 of them surpluses — and when he left office, Australia’s economic position was the envy of the world: large surpluses, no debt, high growth and low unemployment.
Australia has had 28 years of uninterrupted growth. However, investors are understandably wary as Europe slouches toward recession, 2019 growth slows in China, Britain made a chaotic exit from the EU and the US-China tariff stand-off showed no signs of abating. How were we placed to weather the next global financial storm? And how do policymakers and central banks spur growth if growth continues to decline?