Australia trade balance unexpectedly shrinks in March as exports lag in World Economy News 08/05/2026 Australia logged an unexpected trade deficit in March, as the country’s key export shrank on softer commodity shipments, while imports rose sharply on demand for computing equipment. Australia logged a of A$1.84 billion ($1.3 billion) in March, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed on Thursday. The print was below expectations for a A$4.25 billion surplus, and also reversed sharply from a A$5 billion surplus in the prior month. Get more key economic indicators on Australia and other economies by subscribing to InvestingPro The country’s shrank 2.7% month-on-month in March, hit by weaker shipments of metal ores, coal, and sugar. Mineral fuel exports, however, rose 4.6%. Australian surged 14.1% month-on-month, driven chiefly by the increased import of capital goods. Automated Data Processing equipment shipments surged 204% in March from the prior month, amid increasing interest in artificial intelligence and its associated infrastructure. Australia also imported large amounts of crude petroleum and gasoline, following a major fire and outage at a key refinery in Victoria. Source: Investing.com 2026-05-08 hellenicshippingnews... tweet Share