Australia’s Treasurer Frydenberg: Wil not make wholesale changes to wage subsidies

In an interview with local broadcaster Seven Network on Monday, Australia’s Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said that the government has no plans to make “wholesale changes” to its coronavirus wage subsidy scheme.

Key quotes

“What it means is that the country will be borrowing A$60 billion less than otherwise would have occurred.”

“There were no underpayments or overpayments.”

“It was “inherently difficult” to forecast accurately the number of people who could become eligible for the wage subsidy programme.“

On Friday, Australia “halved the number of people expected to be covered by the wage subsidy scheme, after earlier putting the total cost at A$130 billion ($85 billion) to subsidize the pay of about 6 million people until September,” as cited by Reuters.

AUD/USD rejected at 0.6550

Having faced rejection at 0.6550, AUD/USD consolidates the recovery around 0.6530 so far this Monday, as light trading and looming US-China tensions keep the bulls unnerved.