The Morning Edition

Is it the recession you have when you’re not having a recession?

03.14.2019 - By The Age and Sydney Morning HeraldPlay

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With an election looming, treasurer Josh Frydenberg is just weeks away from delivering his first, and possibly last, Federal Budget.

Last week, the OECD warned the Australian economy has fallen into a ''per-capita recession'' for the first time since 2006, with global and Australian growth predicted to slow even further.

The announcement prompted skepticism from critics. Ross Gittins called it a scare tactic - that any recession qualified by an adjective is not the real deal.

This week on Please Explain we’re joined by senior economics writers Jessica Irvine and Shane Wright to cut through the adjectives and figure out if the recession we all feared has finally arrived, or is the economy being used as a tool, once again, to instill panic and fear?

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