With GST just around the corner, will Australia's normally boundless optimism about its economy fade, and allow moderation to become something more serious?
For New Zealand, whose fortunes are heavily invested in the health of the Australian economy, the outcome will be equally as important.
Would, for example, the appeal of goods priced in NZ dollars be sufficient to offset any broader fall in demand from Australian consumers?
Australia will have to wait to see how real the fears are rebounding through the nation's boardrooms.
Given the more measured expectations of growth over the next year, and the strong and steady performance of the Australian economy during the Asian crisis, despite the large numbers of gloomsayers - and in the absence of some other drastic and unforeseen shock - the worst is unlikely to happen.
Budget 2000 feature
Minister's budget statement
Budget speech
She'll be right, probably
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