Australia will delay its foreign aid spending targets and close its embassy in Budapest as the government scrambles to rein in costs to meet revenue shortfalls, Foreign Minister Bob Carr said Monday.

Kuomintang (KMT) Legislator Tsai Chin-Lung (蔡錦隆) yesterday proposed that the Executive Yuan postpone October's scheduled electricity price hike.

Australia's central bank scaled back its inflation and growth forecasts Friday, warning of a “subdued” outlook as the commodities-driven economy transitions away from mining.

Australia's unemployment rate eased to 5.5 percent in April, data showed Thursday, beating expectations by creating 50,100 jobs despite a slowdown in the mining-driven economy.

National Australia Bank (NAB) posted a 22.8-percent spike in first-half net profit Thursday on the back of higher revenue from personal and wholesale banking, a result that met expectations.

Australia's central bank cut its key interest rate by a quarter percentage point to a record low 2.75 percent Tuesday in an effort to boost economic growth as a mining boom cools and the strong Australian dollar erodes business profits.

Australia's election-year budget woes deepened Tuesday, with the government downgrading revenue forecasts by a further AU$5 billion (US$5.1 billion) as the nation's mining boom comes off the boil.

Australia's government said Monday that its tax revenue has continued to fall in recent months as company profits declined and the mining boom that kept the nation out of recession cools.

Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan on Sunday warned a high dollar and lower terms of trade had led to a AU$7.5 billion (US$7.7 billion) “sledgehammer” hit to budget revenues.

Australia's jobless rate jumped to 5.6 percent in March, its highest rate in more than three years, data showed Thursday, adding to the chances of a further interest rate cut.