Property News

Western Australian Statistical Indicators - ABS

05 October 2006

Growth in Western Australia's domestic economy slowed during the June quarter 2006, with State Final Demand increasing by 2.9% in trend chain volume terms, compared to growth of 3.2% in the previous quarter. Despite the deceleration, growth in Western Australia (2.9%) was more than three times that of Australia's growth in Domestic Final Demand of 0.8%. In seasonally adjusted chain volume terms, Western Australia's State Final Demand rose by 5.6% ($1,443 million) in the June quarter, the highest of all states and territories. The main driver of growth was Private business investment, which rose by $670 million (11.7%), mainly on Non-dwelling construction and Intangible fixed assets.

Reflecting the ongoing strength of Western Australia's economic growth, the state has experienced stronger growth in consumer prices and wages than nationally. Perth's Consumer Price Index rose by 4.7% through the year to June quarter 2006, much higher than the 4.0% growth recorded nationally, while the state's Wage Price Index rose by 4.6% over the same period, compared to national growth of 4.2%.

The value of Western Australia's exports rose by 16.4% ($1,812 million) through the year to June quarter 2006. The major commodities contributing to the increase were gold, iron ore and nickel ores. Exports of petroleum detracted from growth during the period, as a result of the prolonged impact of Tropical Cyclones Clare and Glenda on oil production. Western Australia's exports growth was outstripped by the growth in imports of 65.3% ($2,544 million) through the year to June quarter 2006. Gold, a large floating offshore storage facility and refined petroleum oils were the major commodities driving the increase in imports.

Employment in Western Australia continued to grow solidly, with the number of employed persons rising by 6,600 (0.6%) in the three months to August 2006, to 1,074,000 persons. All of this rise was driven by full-time employment, which increased by 10,700 persons (1.4%) over the three months, and was partially offset by a fall in part-time employment. The number of unemployed persons (trend) in Western Australia continued to fall strongly, decreasing by 3,500 (8.7%) in the three months to August 2006, following a decline of 4,800 persons (10.7%) in the previous three month period. As a result, the state's unemployment rate has dropped from 3.6% in May 2006 to a record low of 3.3% in August 2006.

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