Economy - overview Australia has a prosperous Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP at the level of the highly industrialized West European countries. Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, minerals, metals, and fossil fuels. Commodities account for 57% of the value of total exports, so that a downturn in world commodity prices can have a big impact on the economy. The government is pushing for increased exports of manufactured goods, but competition in international markets continues to be severe. Australia has suffered from the low growth and high unemployment characterizing the OECD countries in the early 1990s, but the economy has expanded at reasonably steady rates in recent years. In addition to high unemployment, short-term economic problems include a balancing of output growth and inflationary pressures and the stimulation of exports to offset rising imports, especially given the economic crisis in Asia.

GDP purchasing power parity - $394 billion (1997 est.)

GDP - real growth rate 3.3% (1997 est.)

GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $21,400 (1997 est.)

GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 4%
industry: 31%
services: 65% (1997 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index 1% (1997 est.)

Labor force
total: 9.2 million (December 1997)
by occupation: services 73%, industry 22%, agriculture 5% (1997 est.)

Unemployment rate 8.4% (1997)

Budget
revenues: $89.35 billion
expenditures: $91.92 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY97/98 est.)

Industries mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel

Industrial production growth rate 1.2% (1995)

Electricity - capacity 38.83 million kW (1995)

Electricity - production 163.082 billion kWh (1995)

Electricity - consumption per capita 8,901 kWh (1995)

Agriculture - products wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry

Exports
total value: $68 billion (f.o.b., 1997 est.)
commodities: coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment
partners: Japan 20%, ASEAN 16%, South Korea 9%, US 9%, NZ 8%, UK, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China (1997)

Imports
total value: $67 billion (f.o.b., 1997 est.)
commodities: machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products
partners: US 22%, Japan 17%, UK 6%, China 5%, NZ 5% (1994/95)

Debt - external $150 billion (December 1996)

Economic aid
donor: ODA, $1.43 billion (FY97/98)

Currency 1 Australian dollar ($A) = 100 cents

Exchange rates Australian dollars ($A) per US$1 - 1.4865 (February 1998), (1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996), 1.3486 (1995), 1.3668 (1994), 1.4704 (1993)

Fiscal year 1 July - 30 June

NOTE: The information regarding Australia on this page is re-published from the 1998 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Australia Economy 1998 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Australia Economy 1998 should be addressed to the CIA.