The Australian Bureau of Statistics announced March 4 that home building permits fell unexpectedly by 2.4 percent in January 2013 after approvals shrunk 4.4 percent in December 2012.

The number of permits issued stood at 12,920 in the month of January, which was around 1.7 percent lesser than the 2.8 percent, forecast for the month. Though permits for private sector home building rose 3.2 percent in January, the rates fell 2.1 percent for 2012. Also approvals for apartments and renovations slumped 9.1 percent to 5,251 in the beginning of 2013.

The gross operating profits also declined one percent from the figures of the third quarter results. The low rates are driving the government to bring down borrowing costs and interest rates. The government is planning to hold a meeting Tuesday March 5 to sketch out alternatives that will help balance the construction industry and the economy as well, reports Businessweek.

"Fourth-quarter data confirm the economy lost steam in the second half of 2012. Company profits, capital spending and construction have all disappointed. With fourth-quarter gross domestic product growth likely to surprise on the downside, we expect at least one more rate cut in the second quarter," Katrina Ell, economist at Moody's Analytics in Sydney, said to Bloomberg.

The value of Australian dollar has weakened over the past few months due to the worsening sentiment in China's services sector expansion. According to a report by China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, it was revealed that service sector growth of China had hit record five-month lows in February.

The sequestration (spending cuts) that came into effect in the U.S. last week have also had an impact on the Australian Dollar value, reports Rupeerains.

However, experts remain optimistic about the country's domestic and economic growth for 2012.

"I'm firmly of the view that for Australia, the glass is more than half full. We approach our challenges from a position that almost any other country would trade for," Wayne Swan, treasurer of Australia, told The Business Spectator.