We are all aware of what happens abroad, and our own expectations and economic behaviour cannot but be affected by those events. Whether or not the next GDP statistic, due in early June, shows another decline, I think the reasonable person, looking at all the information available now, would come to the conclusion that the Australian economy, too, is in recession.
1 These are periods of hardship for significant parts of the community. People lose jobs, businesses fail, loans go bad, and plans are unfulfilled. As such, they are to be avoided if possible and at least ameliorated when they occur.