Treasurer Scott Morrison has challenged Labor to set out its policy costings well before the election.
The challenge came as Mr Morrison prepared to debate shadow treasurer Chris Bowen at the National Press Club on Friday.
The major parties have spent much of the election campaign questioning each other's credentials in balancing the budget and driving jobs and growth, at a fragile time in the national and global economy.
Mr Morrison, who only took on the moneybags job in September last year, said the key problem with Labor was "promising to spend money that's not there".
"Bill Shorten is spending money that he doesn't have," he told reporters in Canberra on Thursday.
"Chris Bowen needs to tell us what it all costs over four years, if he has any hope of being able to live up to his obligations under the Charter of Budget Honesty."
Mr Bowen said Labor would not make any "unrealistic promises" given the pressure the coalition had put on the budget, including tripling the deficit.
All costings would be released well before July 2, not on the Thursday before election day as the coalition did in 2013, he said.
"Tony Burke and I will be outlining the full impact of Labor's policies on the bottom line before the precedent set by Joe Hockey," Mr Bowen said.
A swathe of data released since the election was called has pointed to weaknesses in the Australian economy:
* Capital expenditure fell 5.2 per cent in the March quarter, including a 12 per cent slump in mining investment.
* Construction work dipped 2.6 per cent in the March quarter.
* Unemployment was steady at 5.7 per cent in April, but full-time jobs fell.
* Wages growth over the year was slowest since 1998.
* The Pre-Election Fiscal Outlook warned persistently weak inflation and wages, as well as a drop in commodity prices, would lower tax receipts and make balancing the books harder.
