The Reserve Bank governor is warning recovery from this year's recession is likely to be "uneven and drawn out" as Australia's gross domestic product (GDP) grows for the first time in 2020.

The latest figures from the Bureau of Statistics show GDP grew 3.3 per cent in the September quarter, but declined 3.8 per cent in the year to September 2020. The September quarter growth came after a 7 per cent economic contraction in the three months through June — the worst fall on record, which confirmed Australia had entered a technical recession due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The return to growth follows a year of economic contraction, but with high unemployment forecast to persist for several years, the effects of the recession continue to be felt.

CommSec chief economist Craig James said the growth meant Australia was technically out of recession. The textbook definition of a recession is two consecutive quarters of economic contraction, but Mr James said that definition was not perfect and failed to take into account "the societal impact of recession … especially on the labour market".

"But based on this definition, Australia has emerged from recession and the outlook for growth is encouraging," he said.

Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said there was reason to take hope in the latest numbers, but said Australia was "not out of this crisis yet". 

"Technically the recession is over, but the recovery is not," he said.