Australian economy set for $10b lockdown hit

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The extended lockdowns in Australia’s two most populous states of Sydney and Victoria, which are aimed at curbing Delta covid strain contagion, could cost the country $10 billion, KPMG Global noted in its latest report.

Key findings

“KPMG estimates up to 1.5 percentage points will be stripped from growth in the September quarter based on shutdowns of 40 days across Greater Sydney and 10 days in Victoria, with the cost being borne largely by private businesses and privately employed workers.”

“The lockdown in Sydney would cost about $220 million a day while in Victoria the cost would be closer to $150 million a day. Over the assumed lockdown period, the total cost would be close to $10 billion.”

“The shift this time is that it’s going to be much more felt in the private sector, in profits and wages, than in the public sector.”

“At the individual level, there are people who are going to be worse off after lockdown who were better off before it started.”