Corporate leaders have welcomed tax cuts and investment incentives
Corporate chiefs have welcomed a federal budget which unleashes more than $74b in new jobs and tax stimulus, saying it charts a course out of recession.
Business
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The nation’s top corporate leaders have welcomed a federal budget which unleashes more than $74b in tax cuts and investment incentives in a bid to drag the nation out of recession.
National Australia Bank chief Ross McEwan, who rebuilt the Royal Bank of Scotland following the global financial crisis, said the budget had set the path for an economic recovery.
The banking veteran also threw down the gauntlet to corporate Australia, saying it was time to “step up” and make use of budget measures to spur the economic recovery.
“Getting businesses going again isn’t just the responsibility of governments,” Mr McEwan, who remains locked down in Melbourne, said on Wednesday.
“Companies like NAB must also step up. We all have a responsibility to do our part to ensure Australia emerges as a stronger global player on the other side of this.”
Mr McEwan said personal income tax cuts, instant asset write-offs for business, wage subsidies for new workers, research and development measures and specific assistance for manufacturing would all help rebuild the economy.
Premier Investment chair Solomon Lew said the budget would benefit nearly every single business in the nation.
“In my business career I have never witnessed such a well-thought out budget,” he said.
“It cannot be understated just how much this will provide a shot in the arm to employment, youth job creation, consumer confidence and spending.
“This budget will help bring the Australian economy out of the doldrums and back to where it needs to be.”
Premier owns a stable of retail brands including Just Jeans, Smiggle, Peter Alexander and it also the biggest shareholder in Myer.
Woolworths chief executive Brad Banducci said the budget was good news for the recovery and called out the increased funding of mental health services.
“We welcome the budget as a positive measure to move the economy back towards a path of sustainable economic growth and job creation,’’ Mr Banducci said.
Xero Australia managing director Trent Innes said bringing forward and backdating tax cuts for 11 million Australia’s would provide a critical boost to the economy.
“The best way for people to help boost the economy and jobs is to spend these tax cuts, particularly in small businesses,” Mr Innes said.
Business Council of Australia chief Jennifer Westacott said it was “the right budget at the right time”.
“By shifting from emergency support to targeted spending, the budget will help employers get back to business and get on with urgently creating the new jobs needed for the recovery,” she said.
The Australian share market headed higher on Wednesday with the ASX 200 adding 1.25 per cent to close above 6000 points for the first time in a month.
The nation’s key benchmark has finished in the green every day this week – rising 4.2 per cent since Monday – with banks, retailer and property trusts among the best performers.
UBS chief economist George Tharenou said the level of fiscal stimulus rolled out in the budget “far exceeded our bullish expectations”.
Deutsche economist Phil Odonaghoe said a record $213.7b deficit for 2020-21 was bigger than he expected and questioned the pace at which the government was expecting to narrow it
The deficit is forecast to have shrunk by 70 per cent to $66.9b by 2023-24.
By contrast, the deficit had only shrunk 11 per cent four years after the peak global financial crisis deficit was posted in 2009-10.
“We think the risks are heavily skewed to larger deficits across the out years and with that a higher level of bond issuance,” he said.
Originally published as Corporate leaders have welcomed tax cuts and investment incentives