Warning comes as forecast for nation’s economic growth downgraded amid concerns over rising debt and inflation

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The International Monetary Fund has called on Australia’s federal and state governments to cut spending as it warns the Reserve Bank may have to hike interest rates further to get price pressures back under control.

More disciplined budgets would rein in rising debt burdens and help solve Australia’s long-running inflation problem, the IMF said in a new report, as it downgraded its forecast for Australia’s economic growth in 2027.

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