MARCH QUARTER 2016 KEY FIGURES: ALL LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT


In the March quarter 2016:

• Taxation revenue decreased 2.4% to $116,605m from $119,502m in the December quarter 2015.
• General government sector expenses exceeded revenue resulting in a GFS net operating balance of -$4,546m.
• The GFS net lending(+)/borrowing(-) position for the general government sector was -$7,635m.

			Dec Qtr 2015	Mar Qtr 2016	Dec Qtr 2015 to Mar Qtr 2016
			$m	$m	% change
Current Prices
Taxation revenue
	General government		119 502	116 605	–2.4
Total revenue
	General government		144 372	141 442	–2.0
	Public non-financial corporations		19 937	20 314	1.9
Total expenses
	General government		146 762	145 988	–0.5
	Public non-financial corporations		20 452	20 252	–1.0
GFS Net operating balance
	General government		–2 390	–4 546	. .
	Public non-financial corporations		–516	63	. .
GFS Net lending(+)/borrowing(-)
	General government		–6 993	–7 635	. .
	Public non-financial corporations		–2 011	–1 994	. .

. . not applicable



QUARTERLY NATIONAL ACCOUNTS PUBLIC SECTOR MEASURES - KEY FIGURES

The table below includes the key public sector aggregates for the March quarter 2016 which will be included in the Australian National Accounts: National Income, Expenditure and Product (cat. no. 5206.0). The key figures shown include Government Final Consumption Expenditure for general government and Gross Fixed Capital Formation for general government and public corporations, seasonally adjusted in current prices and chain volume terms.

In the March quarter 2016:

• In seasonally adjusted chain volume terms, total general government final consumption expenditure increased by $641m, a rise of 0.9% compared with the December quarter 2015.
• In seasonally adjusted chain volume terms, total general government gross fixed capital formation increased by 5.7% compared with the December quarter 2015.

			Jun Qtr 2015	Sep Qtr 2015	Dec Qtr 2015	Mar Qtr 2016	Dec Qtr 2015 to Mar Qtr 2016
			$m	$m	$m	$m	% change
Current Prices
General government final consumption expenditure (a)
	National - defence		5 898	6 547	6 444	6 724	4.3
	National - non-defence		23 329	23 238	23 661	24 104	1.9
	Total national		29 228	29 785	30 106	30 828	2.4
	State and local		45 278	45 468	45 645	45 922	0.6
	Total general government final consumption expenditure		74 506	75 254	75 750	76 750	1.3
Public gross fixed capital formation
	General government
		National - defence	2 506	1 642	2 162	2 193	1.5
		National - non-defence	2 473	2 063	2 040	2 195	7.6
		Total national	4 979	3 705	4 202	4 389	4.5
		State and local	8 493	8 100	8 228	8 659	5.2
		Total general government	13 471	11 805	12 429	13 047	5.0
	Public corporations
		Commonwealth	1 107	1 227	1 911	1 510	-21.0
		State and local	4 030	3 838	3 619	3 428	-5.3
		Total public corporations	5 137	5 066	5 530	4 938	-10.7
	Total public gross fixed capital formation		18 608	16 871	17 959	17 985	0.1
Memorandum item
	Net purchases of second-hand assets by public sector		420	79	154	386	np
Chain Volume (b)
General government final consumption expenditure (a)
	National - defence		5 687	6 253	6 136	6 368	3.8
	National - non-defence		23 329	23 228	23 463	23 750	1.2
	Total national		29 016	29 481	29 599	30 118	1.8
	State and local		43 830	43 798	44 096	44 218	0.3
	Total general government final consumption expenditure		72 846	73 279	73 695	74 336	0.9
Public gross fixed capital formation
	General government
		National - defence	2 249	1 475	1 895	1 922	1.4
		National - non-defence	2 448	2 052	2 027	2 201	8.6
		Total national	4 697	3 526	3 923	4 123	5.1
		State and local	8 411	8 009	8 102	8 584	5.9
		Total general government	13 108	11 535	12 025	12 707	5.7
	Public corporations
		Commonwealth	1 089	1 203	1 865	1 482	-20.5
		State and local	3 979	3 777	3 576	3 398	-5.0
		Total public corporations	5 068	4 980	5 441	4 880	-10.3
	Total public gross fixed capital formation		18 176	16 515	17 466	17 587	0.7
Memorandum item
	Net purchases of second-hand assets by public sector		408	76	147	375	np

np not available for publication but included in totals where applicable, unless otherwise indicated
(a) See paragraph 37 of the Explanatory Notes for the relationship between general government final consumption expenditure and GFS aggregates.
(b) Reference year for chain volume measures is 2013-14.


MARCH QUARTER 2016 GFS RELEASE

This release presents quarterly government finance statistics on an accrual accounting basis. All tables are presented in GFS operating statement format and are for the general government sector, with the exception of Table 2 which presents data for the public non-financial corporations sector.

Detailed quarterly GFS are released for the current financial year only, other than in the September quarter, when the quarters of the previous financial year are presented. Users requiring data for earlier periods should consult the annual publication Government Finance Statistics, Australia (cat. no. 5512.0). The latest issue (2014-15) was released on 26 April 2016. Final annual GFS results for 2015-16 are scheduled for release by the ABS in April 2017.

Table		Sep 15	Dec 15	Mar 16
Table 1 All Levels of Government - General Government		*	*	*
Table 2 All Levels of Government - Public Non-Financial Corporations		*	*	*
Table 3 Commonwealth Government		*	*	*
Table 4 Total State & Local		*	*	*
Table 5 New South Wales		*	*
Table 6 Victoria		*	*
Table 7 Queensland		*	*
Table 8 South Australia		*	*
Table 9 Western Australia		*	*
Table 10 Tasmania		*	*
Table 11 Northern Territory		*	*
Table 12 Australian Capital Territory		*	*

Government Finance Statistics are part of the broader suite of macroeconomic accounts produced by the ABS. They share their basic concepts with the National Accounts and Balance of Payments. The conceptual framework is agreed internationally and published by the International Monetary Fund. Macroeconomic statistics are compiled to enable macroeconomic analysis and the standards may differ from accounting standards in some regards.


TRANSACTIONS RELATED TO RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA DIVIDENDS

During September quarter 2015, the Treasurer determined that a sum of $1.9 billion in Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) earnings available for distribution from 2014-15 was payable as a dividend to the Commonwealth. RBA dividends are recorded in GFS and the National Accounts in the period that the Treasurer makes the determination. This timing is different to the accounting standards used for the Commonwealth Financial Statements where the RBA dividend is recorded in the period that the dividend is earned.


TRANSACTIONS RELATED TO VISA APPLICATION CHARGES

In December 2015, the Commonwealth Government released the 2015-16 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) which included a reclassification of visa application charges (VAC). In MYEFO these charges are now treated as taxation revenue rather than sales of goods and services. This reclassification has been applied to the Government Finance Statistics (GFS), with no impact on total GFS revenue or the GFS net operating balance. The National Accounts statistics will maintain coherence with previously published data and classify this transaction as sales of goods and services. These treatments will remain in place until a review of the treatment of VAC and similar government charges in macroeconomic statistics has been completed. This review is expected to be finalised by the end of 2016.


TRANSACTIONS RELATED TO THE ACT GOVERNMENT ASBESTOS REMOVAL SCHEME

Since March quarter 2015, the ACT Government has undertaken a range of activities to address the health risks associated with properties affected by asbestos. In macroeconomic statistics, transactions for the initial purchase of the properties by the ACT Government from householders have been recorded as expenditure on non-financial assets in the GFS. These transactions do not contribute to the net operating balance on the operating statement; instead they are shown under net acquisition of non-financial assets. This approach in macroeconomic statistics is based on the principle that observed prices are treated as a market price in most circumstances.

The ACT Treasury has applied a different interpretation for the purposes of preparing its financial statements. Under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles used by ACT Treasury, homeowner acquisition transactions may include a transfer component, which would be appropriately recognised as an expense. The ABS acknowledges that a genuine divergence exists for these transactions between GFS and the ACT Government’s consolidated financial statements and that the difference between the sets of statements has arisen through a change in treatment by the ABS.


FORTHCOMING ISSUES

The release of GFS quarterly data is usually coordinated to be the day before the respective issue of Australian National Accounts: National Income, Expenditure and Product (cat. no. 5206.0). The scheduled release dates for the next two issues are:

Issue	5519.0.55.001	5206.0
June 2016	6 September 2016	7 September 2016
September 2016	6 December 2016	7 December 2016

INQUIRIES

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