Malcolm Turnbull has appealed to voters to choose stability as he sought to weave Britain's exit from the European Union into the federal election campaign.
A week out from the poll, the prime minister seized on a 52-48 vote in the British referendum to leave the EU as a sign Australia needed a steady hand in a time of instability in global markets.
"A strong majority government, a strong economic plan - that is what Australia needs in these times of opportunity and uncertainty," Mr Turnbull told reporters in Devonport, Tasmania.
The referendum result claimed the scalp of British prime minister David Cameron, who championed the Remain campaign.
"A negotiation with the European Union will need to begin under a new prime minister," Mr Cameron told reporters in London, adding he would leave by October.
The stability of a coalition government versus the "chaos" of a Labor-Greens minority has been one of Mr Turnbull's mantras through the campaign, as polls show the major parties neck-and-neck.
He's expected to reinforce the message at the coalition's official launch in western Sydney on Sunday.
Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen said while the Brexit would echo around the world, "now is not the time for these impacts to be politicised or dramatised in a scare campaign".
"What we need is a clear, calm and methodical approach through this situation," Mr Bowen said.
Labor leader Bill Shorten said Australia could withstand any fallout from a Brexit, just as the Rudd government saw the nation through the global financial crisis.
"The fundamentals of the Australian economy are solid," he told reporters in Darwin.
"We cope with international events all the time."
AMP Capital chief economist Shane Oliver said the Brexit was likely to favour the coalition over Labor.
"People think `there is this global uncertainty, we don't want a risk with how we vote, let's go with the coalition, stick with what we know'," he told ABC TV.
"It's a slight positive for the prime minister."
The shock event came as former prime minister and treasurer Paul Keating took aim at the coalition's economic credentials.
Mr Keating acknowledged his government cut the company tax rate from 49 per cent to 33 per cent to boost economic growth.
But he said his policy was properly costed and funded, not a $50 billion "discretionary unfunded tax cut".
Mr Turnbull told reporters the government's "very substantial savings" to cover the cost of the tax cuts came from cutting back high-end superannuation concessions.
Mr Bowen said the super changes were not enough to cover the $50 billion cost.
Mr Shorten visited the NT to unveil priorities for the territory, including flood-proofing roads, the national broadband network and a new business advisory council.
He also committed to overhauling temporary work visas to ensure Australian pay and conditions for visa holders and that the terms of visas were more strictly adhered to.
Mr Turnbull committed $150 million to relocating and expanding the University of Tasmania's northern campuses.
