17 Dec 2009

Low growth in Australia

5:59 am on 17 December 2009

The Australian economy expanded 0.2% in the three months to September, the third consecutive quarter of growth.

That's less than economists had expected and below the 0.6% rise in the previous quarter and 0.5% increase before that.

Growth came from spending on consumer goods and new homes and government spending on infrastructure, while the high Australian dollar led to a fall in exports.

On an annual basis, the economy grew 0.5%.