WA continues to drive the Australian economy

Western Australia is still the nation’s economic powerhouse, the recently released CommSec State of the States report shows. WA leads the other states in Australia in four of eight criteria over the past three months, and is second in three of the four other criteria.

“Western Australia remains Australia’s best-performing economy, but Northern Territory is coming up fast, with the Inpex natural gas project providing strong momentum to the Top End economy,” report author and chief economist Craig James says.

Each quarter CommSec analyses the state and territory jurisdictions using eight key indicators – economic growth, retail spending, equipment investment, unemployment, construction work, population growth, housing finance and dwelling commencements.

Western Australia leads the country in construction work, retail trade, population growth and equipment investment. Over the past quarter the state has held its position while NT passed the ACT to take second spot, and NSW improved to rank alongside Victoria and Queensland.

WA’s economic output was 34 per cent higher than the decade average level. It also outperformed the other states in terms of equipment investment. With an unemployment rate of 3.9 per cent, both the NT and WA have the strongest job markets in the nation.

In terms of population growth, WA is the clear leader with an annual growth rate of 3.14 per cent. The report says home prices are lower than a year ago in only half of the state capitals. Real wages were positive in all state economies in the June quarter, with the strongest growth in WA. The report notes a slowdown in the mining sector could lead to weaker spending and a softer jobs market.

To read the full report: www.investing.commsec.com.au/media/