NATION building is this year's budget tag line, with roads, rail, ports and jobs the big focus for Australia to ride out the global financial crisis.
But while the Federal Government would invest $8.5 billion in Australia's critical roads, rail and port infrastructure needs, there was an obvious focus on big-ticket metropolitan projects.
The Network 1 road freight corridor was a big winner, though, with $3.4 billion earmarked for the Hume, Pacific and Bruce highways which form the corridor between Melbourne and Cairns.
But the deficit was the obvious drawcard in the Budget papers this year, with a confirmed cash deficit of $57.6 billion, forecast at 4.9pc of GDP.
The Budget papers say the Budget deficit is "an inevitable consequence of the global recession" which has resulted in a downward revisions to revenues of around $210 billion since last year's forecasts.
The papers report the Government expects to halve its deficit by 2012-2013 and return the Budget to surplus by mid 2016.
To do so the Government has found savings over the next four years of $22.6 billion.
This year's Budget papers reveal GDP is forecast to contract by half of one per cent in 2009-2010.
It says its recent stimulus measures are expected to support up to 210,000 jobs.
Rural exports
A continued recovery in rural exports should support what is otherwise a bleak outlook for Australia's export forecasts for the next financial year.
This year's Budget papers report that, in line with the collapse in world trade resulting from the global recession, Australia's exports were expected to fall significantly in 2009-2010, mainly due to the sharp deterioration in the growth prospects of Australia's major trading partners.
This is expected to result in a loss of $50 billion in lost export income in the next year.
However, rural exports were expected to increase "solidly" this year and continue this recovery in 2009/2010 with growth of five and a half per cent.
Non-rural commodity exports are forecast to decline by five per cent.
The papers say farm production rose this year because of more favourable seasonal conditions, which will flow through to increased rural exports.
Farm production is expected to return to pre-drought levels this coming financial year and remain there in 2010/2011.
Outlook
The papers say Australia will eventually benefit from being situated in "the most dynamic region in the global economy".
"Once the global economy begins to recover, Asia is expected to be a key engine of growth.
"China is showing signs of recovery from the crisis and Australia's strong trade linkages with China will assist a recover in our domestic economy."
Treasurer, Wayne Swan, told journalists in the annual Budget lock up that it was a "significant budget" and about "nation building for recovery".
He said at its heart were big projects aimed at creating "jobs and wealth for the future".
He said there have been some hard choices in the Budget, framed in the most difficult of circumstances in 75 years, particularly as the global recession had "moved like wildfire".
He said the impact of the contraction had resulted in brutal impacts on growth, employment and government revenue, with the $210 billion write down in Government revenue "certainly a first".
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