Coronavirus leaves Australian economy facing first recession in 30 years

High household debt and a reliance on Chinese demand for its exports leave Canberra acutely vulnerable. Some predict unemployment will hit 15 per cent

Australians have little experience of economic hardship – the country’s last downturn was in 1990

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The mostly deserted steps of the Sydney Opera House, where scheduled public performances have been cancelled due to the coronavirus. Photo: Reuters

Published: 7:00am, 29 Mar 2020Updated: 4:44pm, 29 Mar 2020

Anthony Price’s calendar had been chock-a-block with work for weeks to come. Then the Perth-based entertainer and costume designer watched his gigs evaporate overnight as the Australian government ordered the closure of entertainment venues nationwide. The drastic move was the latest emergency measure by Canberra to halt the spread of the novel coronavirus and the potentially deadly respiratory disease it causes, Covid-19.

“I have zero work at the moment, nothing at all,” said Price, who normally splits his time between performing burlesque shows and making costumes for fellow performers on the entertainment circuit. “I want to work, I don’t want to be on the dole, I’d be happy to go out there and stack shelves or sweep.”

Price, 26, estimated he had lost more than A$10,000 (HK$47,000) due to cancelled events over the next two months alone.

“All I am qualified to do is be an entertainer and be an artist and to not be able to do that is heartbreaking as well, because it’s my passion,” he said. “It’s what I love doing, entertaining people and bringing joy into people’s lives and I can’t do that any more.”

Digital market boards at the Australian Stock Exchange in Sydney. Photo: EPA

Price is among countless Australians suddenly facing unprecedented financial anxiety and hardship as a government-ordered shutdown of large sectors of the economy in response to the coronavirus outbreak sends the country hurtling towards its first recession in nearly three decades.

Amid fears that hospitals could soon be overwhelmed by an exponential rise in coronavirus cases, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Sunday that all bars, nightclubs and adult entertainment venues would be forced to close, while restaurants and cafes would be restricted to takeaway and home delivery. Gyms, beauty salons, tattoo parlours and other businesses deemed to be non-essential have also been shut, while weddings and funerals are being restricted to fewer than a dozen people.

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Coronavirus leaves Australian economy facing first recession in 30 years

High household debt and a reliance on Chinese demand for its exports leave Canberra acutely vulnerable. Some predict unemployment will hit 15 per cent Australians have little experience of economic hardship – the country’s last downturn was in 1990

High household debt and a reliance on Chinese demand for its exports leave Canberra acutely vulnerable. Some predict unemployment will hit 15 per cent

Australians have little experience of economic hardship – the country’s last downturn was in 1990