Hyping up assumed 'China slowdown' harms business

One of the most influential Australian media outlets has hyped up a hypothetical "China slowdown" while highlighting the severe economic consequences it could bring to Australia.

An article, published by The Australian, one of the country's major newspapers, on Wednesday, begins with a widely circulated report by Deloitte Access Economics, which outlines a number of scenarios that are wildly hypothetical regarding China and Australia, and assesses the potential impact should any of them actually occur.

The report presents three scenarios that the author believes are plausible: a downturn in China's economy which sends Australia into recession; Asian economies performing better than expected and the Australian government having the courage to carry out reform; and Australia getting better at being "cyber smart".