Why Australia: Benchmark Report 2022

Why Australia
Benchmark Report 2022

Discover why Australia is a
great investment destination
Contents
Why Australia 3
1. Resilient economy 4
2. Dynamic industries 14
3. Innovation and skills 27
4. Global ties 40
5. Strong foundations 50
Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 2

Australian resilience: diversity,
prosperity and strong foundations
Why Australia?
Australia has high vaccination rates, strong dynamic edge in global markets. For example,
employment growth and high levels of consumer surveys now rank Australia’s fintech industry
savings. This underpins global confidence in the sixth in the world – and second in the Asia-
Australian economy. Pacific region. Australia is now a magnet for tech
investment in critical areas, including finance,
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) highlighted regulation, medicine and education.
Australia’s resilience in its January 2022 World
Economic Update. It says Australia’s ‘strong Trade is also growing quickly. Strong commodity
health and economic policies allowed for a quick prices pushed minerals exports higher in 2021.
economic recovery’. This recovery was ‘faster This created a record trade surplus of more than
than in most other advanced economies.’ A$120 billion in 2021. Our agricultural sector is
one of the most productive in the world and is set
Australia’s growth will remain strong at an to deliver a record A$61 billion export crop
estimated 4.2% in 2022. Household consumption in 2021–22.
has rebounded quickly, now exceeding pre-
pandemic levels. Meanwhile, generous tax Australia’s openness to trade and investment is
incentives look set to stimulate the strongest central to our long-term success. We have 16
boost in business investment since the mining free trade agreements and have led the formation
boom. In 2023, Australia will become the world’s of multiple regional trade agreements in the
12th largest economy. Asia-Pacific region. Low tariffs and ready
access to Asian markets make us a natural
Our vibrant, technology-driven industries are gateway for inward investment. Over 70% of
complemented by abundant reserves of resources our trade is now with fast-growing economies in
and energy. Top tech talent gives Australia a the Asia-Pacific region.

01 Resilient economy
The world’s 12th largest economy 6

Resilience in the face of adversity 7
High levels of COVID-19 support 8
A low-tax country by global standards 9
Low government debt by global standards 10
Proximity to Asia’s powerhouse economies 11
A diversified, services-based economy 12
Service industries power ahead 13

01 Resilient economy
A resilient economy that outperforms in global rankings
Australia’s economy has shown resilience to at 4.2% in 2022, according to the International
multiple shocks throughout the COVID-19 Monetary Fund (IMF).
pandemic. Closed borders and targeted
Australian GDP is projected to be 6.7% larger by
lockdowns contained the virus throughout most
the end of 2022 than in pre-pandemic 2019.
of 2020 and 2021. International trade remained
This increase over the pre-COVID-19 level in
strong in most sectors, partly thanks to high
2019 is higher than the average for advanced
commodity prices. Australia’s international
economies (3.7%).
arrivals began to resume in November 2021
and the international border fully reopened in Two other factors underpin our resilience:
February 2022. location and diversity. Fast-growing Asia is
set to deliver 44% of global GDP by 2026.
The Australian Government’s cautious approach
Australian trade is already oriented towards
has benefited the economy. Australia’s
Asia’s economies – especially in minerals,
household consumption is expected to improve
energy, services and agriculture. Also, our
as restrictions ease. Meanwhile major tax
diverse and highly productive economy is
incentives are projected to trigger the strongest
resilient against economic shocks, including
boost in business investment since the mining
the ongoing pandemic.
boom. Australia’s growth rate is remaining strong

The world’s 12th World’s largest economies, 2023
Percentage share of total world nominal GDP in US$
largest economy
Australia is set to become the world’s 12th
largest economy in 2023, according to the
4. Germany 4.1% 14. Russia 1.5%
IMF. Nominal GDP will be around A$2.5 trillion 19. Saudi Arabia 0.9% 1. US 24.1%
(US$1.8 trillion). Australia is home to just 0.3% 18. Netherlands 1.0% 3. Japan 4.8%
of the world’s population, but accounts for 1.7% 5. UK 3.3%
of the global economy.

15. Spain 1.4% 8. Canada 2.1%
2. China 19.7%
11. Korea 1.7%
7. France 2.8% 13. Iran 1.6%
20. Taiwan 0.8%
17. Mexico 1.2%
ASEAN 5.3% (includes 16. Indonesia 1.3%)

16. Indonesia 1.3%
10. Brazil 1.8%
9. Italy 2.0%
6. India 3.2%
12. Australia 1.7%
Notes: 1. Rest of the world’s 196 economies: US$20,926 billion in 2023 or

19% of global GDP. 2. Top 20 largest economies: US$89,826 billion or 81% of
the world’s GDP in 2023.
Sources: International Monetary Fund, 2022, World Economic Outlook April

2022; Austrade

Resilience in the face Expected change in real GDP1 , selected economies
Percentage change from 2019 to 2022
of adversity
8
7
Australia’s growth rate is expected to remain 7.0
6.7
6.5
strong at 4.2% in 2022, according to the IMF. 6 6.3
5.9 5.8
This follows a solid rebound of 4.7% in 2021. 5.3
5 5.1
Australia’s rapid recovery compares well
4
internationally. GDP is projected to be 6.7% 4.0 Advanced economies = 3.7%
larger by the end of 2022 than in pre-pandemic 3 3.0
2.8
2019. This increase over the pre-COVID-19 level
2 2.1
1.9
in 2019 is higher than the average for advanced 1.6
1.4 1.3
1
economies (3.7%). Tax incentives will encourage 1.1
a forecast boom in business investment. 0.2 0.1

0
-1 -0.6
-0.8
-1.5 -1.7
-2 -1.8
-3
-4
-5
-6
-6.8
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Notes: 1. Gross domestic product (GDP) is national currency and constant
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Fr
LA
iA
Ca
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ilip
Th
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prices. 2. Latin America and the Caribbean.
ut
ud
In
Ph
pe
et
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Sa
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Sources: International Monetary Fund, 2022, World Economic Outlook Update
ro
Eu
April 2022; Austrade

High levels of Fiscal measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic for selected economies
As a percentage of GDP1
COVID-19 support
After Australia closed its borders, the Australian 46.2
45.1
Government created an economic stimulus 43.1
package worth 20% of GDP. 3 In global terms, this Liquidity support2
placed Australia between the US and the EU. Additional spending or foregone revenues
36.0
Federal and state governments provided around
A$20 billion in direct economic assistance to
businesses and households in the September
27.9
quarter of 2021.4 This kept Australians
24.8
employed and companies in business. 23.1
21.2
20.1 19.9
19.2 18.8
16.5 Global average = 16.4%
15.4
14.6
10.5 10.2 9.7 9.4
6.5 6.1
5.0
2.7
2.4 1.9
Notes: 1. Includes Health and non-health sectors. 2. Liquidity support is
defined as “Below-the-line” measures plus Contingent liabilities. “Below-the-line”
Russia
Netherlands
Indonesia
Italy
Japan
Germany
UK
US
France
Singapore
New Zealand
Australia
Canada
Hong Kong SAR
Thailand
Korea
EU
Malaysia
Sweden
China
Philippines
Vietnam
UAE
Mexico
Brazil
measures involve the creation of assets or liabilities without affecting today’s
fiscal balance, like an equity injection in a firm. Contingent liabilities are not
explicitly recorded on government balance sheets and arise only in the event
of a particular discrete situation, such as a crisis. For example, in the case of
Australia, the Coronavirus SME Guarantee Scheme. 3. The figure estimated
in Australia’s Final Budget Outcome 2020–21 is about 15%. 4. The Treasury,
Opening statement to the Economics Legislation Committee, accessed 27
October 2021.
Sources: International Monetary Fund, 2021, Fiscal Monitor, October 2021;
Austrade

Tax revenue as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by country
A low-tax country by
Percentage of GDP, 2020 or latest available
global standards
50
47
45
Australia has one of the lowest overall tax Tax on personal income & corporate profits
43 43 43
rates among OECD countries, measured as a 42 42 Other taxes
percentage of GDP1 . Australian social security 40 40 39
39 38
taxes2 represent less than 1% of GDP, whereas 37
36
the OECD average is 9%. Taxes on goods and 34
33
services represented 7% of Australia’s GDP, 33
31 31
compared to 11% across OECD countries. 30
28 28 28
26
24
20
20
18
10
Notes: 1. Tax systems across countries vary significantly and this makes it often
difficult to make direct comparisons on a like-for-like basis. A simple measure
used by the OECD, and others, is to consider the total ‘tax take’ of an economy.
The tax take (or tax burden) is the ratio of total tax revenues to GDP, at market
prices. This ratio is a broad measure of a country’s taxation impost which cuts
across the various bases, rates, thresholds and purposes, which distinguishes
0
one system from another. 2. Social security contributions/taxes as “compulsory
9)
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8)
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7)
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payments paid to general government that confer entitlement to receive a
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(contingent) future social benefit”. For example, unemployment insurance or
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family allowances. Social security contributions are often levied on employers
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Au
Fr
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Ja
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and not only employees. 3. The number in brackets indicates the country’s
Au
et
ew
ranking across OECD members, excluding Costa Rica.
N
Sources: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2021,
Tax revenue, accessed 20 December 2021; Austrade

Low government debt General government net debt, 2019 to 2022
As a percentage of GDP
by global standards
169 2019 2022 Change,
The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered a rapid ppt4
2019
increase in public debt in almost all economies. Advanced economies average 75 89 14
Expected increase to 2022
Australia entered 2020 with very low public Euro area 69 81 12
debt (less than 30% of GDP) and Australia’s debt 139 G20 advanced 82 97 15
burden will remain low by global standards. In G7 87 102 15
its October 2021 ‘Fiscal Monitor’ report, the Emerging market & middle-income economies average 38 46 8
117
International Monetary Fund estimated that the Asia (gross debt only; net debt figures unavailable) 57 72 15
Australian Government’s net debt would be 43% Europe 29 38 8

102 101 101
of GDP in 2022. This is well below the 89% average 100
95
G20 emerging 38 47 10
forecast for advanced economies and the 102% Latin America 44 53 9
average forecast for G7 economies.

72
69
63
60
53 52 51
46
43
41 40
35
32
25
Notes: 1. For cross-economy comparability, net debt levels reported by national 21 21
statistical agencies for economies that have adopted the 2008 System of 17 17
15
National Accounts (Australia, Canada, US) are adjusted to exclude unfunded 11
pension liabilities of government employees’ defined-benefit pension plans.
2. Belgium’s net debt series has been revised to ensure consistency between
liabilities and assets. “Net debt” is defined as gross debt (Maastricht definition)
Italy
Spain
Austria
Brazil
The Netherlands
Indonesia
Japan
Portugal
France
US1
Belgium2
UK
Israel
South Africa
Germany
Ireland3
Mexico
Australia1
Turkey
Canada1
Korea
Switzerland
Chile
Saudi Arabia
New Zealand
Denmark
Sweden
Poland
minus assets in the form of currency and deposits, loans, and debt securities.
3. “Net debt” for Ireland is defined as gross general debt minus debt instrument
assets, namely, currency and deposits, debt securities, and loans. Net debt was
previously defined as general government debt less currency and deposits.
4. ppt = percentage point.
Sources: International Monetary Fund, Fiscal Monitor, October 2021; Austrade

Proximity to Asia’s Asian economic growth
GDP based on purchasing power parity (PPP)1
powerhouse economies
Asia’s share of global GDP has increased
Compound annual growth rate
steadily from 20% in 1981 and is projected to Countries & regions (%) 1981–2026
reach almost 45% in 2026. Australian trade China and India 10.0
stands to benefit. Most of Australia’s principal Japan, Australia and New Zealand 4.2
ASEAN-9 2
7.4
export partners are located in Northeast and
Newly industrialised economies 3 7.7
Southeast Asia. A network of 16 free trade
Other developing Asia 7.7
agreements gives Australian companies
Avg. of Asia incl. Australia & NZ 7.8
preferential access to these fast-growing World average 5.9
markets. Australia is well positioned to grow its
100
resources, energy, agriculture, and education 44% 45
and tourism services exports in the Asia region. 90

40
This is because Asia’s middle class is growing
$ trillion (current prices, PPP)

80
35
Percentage of world’s GDP

strongly, and is expected to include 2.2 billion
70
consumers by 2032.4 30
60
25
50
Asia plus Australia and New Zealand as a percentage of
world’s GDP (right-hand axis) 20
40 20%
Notes: 1. The bar represents the value of the regional gross domestic product 15
30
at current prices based on purchasing power parity. 2. To avoid double
counting with newly industrialised economies (NIEs) and ASEAN, Singapore 10
20
was excluded. 3. NIEs: Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, Korea and Taiwan.
4. Brookings Institution, see source below.
10 5
F = Forecast
Sources: International Monetary Fund, 2022, World Economic Outlook April 0 0
2022; Brookings Institution, 2021, Which will be the top 30 consumer markets
of this decade? 5 Asian markets below the radar, Table 1, August 2021; 1981 1986 1991 1996 2001 2006 2011 2016 2021F 2026F
Austrade

A diversified, services- Australia’s real gross value added (GVA) by industry
As a percentage of total industry, 2020–21
based economy
Other services 2.5% Mining1 10.6%
Australia’s resilience is underpinned by a diverse
mix of competitive industries. In 2020–21 Ownership of dwellings2 8.9%
(financial year ending June), the country’s Accommodation and Manufacturing1 5.9%
services and goods industries accounted food services 2.2%
for about 81% and 19% of real gross value Information media and
telecommunications 2.4% Agriculture, forestry
added (GVA) respectively. Australia’s mining and fishing1 2.6%
Electricity, gas, water and
sector generated 10.6% of GVA, followed by waste services 2.5%
financial services (9.3%), ownership of dwellings Rental, hiring and real
Financial and insurance
(8.9%) and healthcare and social assistance estate services 3.0%
services 9.3%
(8.2%). Technology-driven sectors – including Administrative and
support services 3.1%
professional, scientific and technical services, Total GVA3 =
education and IT – are worth 15% of total A$1,854 billion
Wholesale trade 4.1%
economic production.
Healthcare and
Transport, postal and social assistance 8.2%
warehousing 4.2%
Retail trade 4.5%

Professional, scientific and
technical services 7.5%
Education and training 5.1%

Notes: 1. Goods comprise agriculture, forestry and fishing, manufacturing
and mining. 2. Ownership of dwellings is not classified as a good or service.
3. GVA is around 95% of total GDP in 2020–21. Public administration and safety 6.0% Construction 7.3%
Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021, Australian National Accounts:
National Income, Expenditure and Product, Table 37. Industry Gross Value
Added, Chain volume measures, Annual; Austrade

Service industries Growth in real gross value added by industry
Compound annual growth rate, 1990–91 to 2020–21
power ahead
The Australian services sector grew by 3.3% Services Goods 1 Not Classified as a good or service
per year in the three decades to June 2021,
outpacing growth in the goods sector. The Information media and telecommunications 5.0
information, media and telecommunications Professional, scientific and technical services 4.8
sector grew fastest, at a compound annual Healthcare and social assistance 4.5
growth rate of 5.0% over the last 30 years, Financial and insurance services 4.3
followed by professional, scientific and technical Mining 4.1
services (4.8%), and healthcare and social Retail trade 3.5
assistance (4.5%). Wholesale trade 3.4
Construction 3.3
Administrative and support services 3.2
Arts and recreation services 2.9
Rental, hiring and real estate services 2.9
Public administration and safety 2.8
Transport, postal and warehousing 2.6
Ownership of dwellings 2 2.4
Education and training 2.2

All-industries average growth:
Accommodation and food services 2.2
3.0% per annum
Agriculture, forestry and fishing 2.0
Services: 3.3%
Other services 2.0
Electricity, gas, water and waste services 1.2 Goods: 2.4%

Notes: 1. Goods comprise agriculture, forestry and fishing, manufacturing and
mining. 2. Ownership of dwellings is not classified as a good or service.
Manufacturing 0.6
Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021, Australian National Accounts:

0 1 2 3 4 5
National Income, Expenditure and Product, Table 37. Industry Gross Value
Added, Chain volume measures, Annual; Austrade

02 Dynamic industries
A leader in new technologies 16

Abundant reserves of resources and energy 17
A major supplier of resources and energy to Asia’s industries 18
Australia’s power surge in wind and solar 19
A top agri-exporter to Asian markets 20
A clean, green source of food and natural fibres 21
Sophisticated financial markets and a large managed funds sector 22
Australia’s A$10 trillion financial sector 23
Leaders in digital adoption 24
A global hub for higher education and skills training 25
Domestic tourism and Australia’s travel industry 26

02 Dynamic industries
Strong global demand for Australia’s resources, energy and agriculture
Global demand for Australia’s energy, minerals and Australia’s high-flying mining and energy sectors are
food kept exports strong throughout 2021. A back- pivoting towards a low-carbon future. Australia has
to-back La Niña season will likely deliver another the world’s second largest reserves of lithium, and
bumper crop for Australian farmers. Agricultural investment is surging into new projects. Meanwhile,
production is forecast to reach a record A$78 wind and solar energy is growing strongly. The ratio
billion in 2021–22. Export value is expected to be of power generated from renewable sources jumped
around A$61 billion. from 21% to 25% in 2021.
Mining and resources powered Australia to a Our digital entrepreneurship is broad-based.

record trade surplus in 2021. High commodity Australia is home to approximately 700 fintech
prices helped. Strong demand for iron ore delivered companies, 600 edtech companies, 500 medtech
A$153 billion worth of exports in 2020–21. During companies, and 400 agtech and foodtech
2021, we vied with Qatar as the world’s biggest companies. Fintechs in particular are thriving
exporter of liquefied natural gas. in Australia’s A$10 trillion financial sector and
attracting global investment.

A leader in new Australia’s tech credentials
technologies
Australian entrepreneurs and academics work 733 fintech 500 medtech
well together. They have pioneered world-class companies1 companies
technologies in agriculture, education, financial A$4 billion industry2 US$1.85 billion digital health market6
services and health. Innovation includes Ranked 6th in the world 3
World top 20 for medtech patents7
the use of blockchain in finance, immersive 44% of fintechs have raised over A$10m 4 A$20 billion Medical Research Future Fund
simulation technologies in education, robotics in
medical procedures and the Internet of Things
in agriculture. Australia is also recognised
as a world leader in silicon-based quantum 600 edtech 400 agtech &
computing research. companies5 foodtech companies8
A$2.2 billion edtech market 15 agtech incubators/accelerators
13,000–strong workforce A$800 million invested annually
through 15 Rural R&D Corporations9
50% of companies are early-stage
startups 8 Innovation Hubs in 40 locations
Sources: 1. KPMG, 2020, KPMG Fintech Landscape 2020. 2. FinTech Australia,

Australian fintech: leading the world, accessed October 2021. 3. Findable,
2021 Global Fintech Rankings. 4. EY, FinTech Australia Census 2021.
5. Austrade, 2021, EduGrowth: Sector overview and statistics. 6. Frost &
Sullivan, 2018, Global Digital Health Outlook. 7. WIPO Patent Statistics, 2021,
Total count by applicant’s origin (equivalent count). 8. KPMG, 2018, Talking
2030: Growing agriculture into a $100 billion industry. 9. Department of
Agriculture, 2020, A new focus on agricultural innovation investments to
harness collective power of RDCs.

Abundant reserves of Australia’s commodity exports, 2020–21
Resources and energy, with global ranking for production and reserves (A$ billion)
resources and energy
Resources Energy Other
Coal $39.3
Australia is a major commodity exporter.
Resources and energy contributed almost three-
quarters of goods exports in 2020–21. Currently,
Australia has the world’s largest reserves of iron
ore, gold and uranium. Liquefied natural gas,
coal and uranium exports make Australia a major
Natural gas $30.5
energy supplier to Asian economies. Demand for
lithium-ion batteries, used in electric vehicles, will Crude petroleum $7.0
power Australia’s lithium industry. Australia Refined petroleum $2.5
Iron ore $152.6
is the leading producer of lithium, and investment Other resources & energy $4.4
Crude minerals $1.0
is set to surge as customers secure global Precious metal ores $2.2
supply chains. Other ores & concentrates $3.5
Confidential minerals ores $3.6
Copper $7.3
Aluminium $8.2
Gold $26.1
Australia’s world ranking for resources and energy in 2020

Production Reserves Production Reserves Production Reserves
Bauxite 1 2 Iron ore 1 1 Rutile 1 1
Black coal 5 4 Lead 2 1 Silver 7 3
Brown coal 7 2 Lithium 1 2 Tantalum 6 1
Sources: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2021, Trade statistical
Cobalt 3 2 Natural gas 7 13 Uranium 3 1
pivot tables; Geoscience Australia, 2021, Australia’s Identified Mineral
Resources; BP, 2021, Statistical Review of World Energy; Austrade Copper 6 2 Nickel 6 1 Zinc 3 1
Gold 2 1 Rare earths 4 6 Zirconium 1 1

A major supplier of Australia’s resources and energy sector
Nominal value of exports1 , 2002–03 to 2022–23 (A$ billion)
resources and energy
to Asia’s industries
Australia’s resources and energy exports have 250 Energy: CAGR² 9.0% (2002–03 to 2022–23)
increased by a factor of five in just 20 years. Resources: CAGR 9.1% (2002–03 to 2022–23)
229
Asia is the big buyer. Following a moderate 208
growth of 3.2% in 2019–20, exports of 200

these two commodities increased by 6.6% to 175
171
around A$310 billion in the year to June 2021.
Australia’s resources and energy exports are
150
projected to hit a new record of A$379 billion in 136
2021–22. This is an impressive result amid global

economic uncertainties.
100
81
50
0
2002–03
2003–04
2004–05
2005–06
2006–07
2007–08
2008–09
2009–10
2010–11
2011–12
2012–13
2013–14
2014–15
2015–16
2016–17
2017–18
2018–19
2019–20
2020–21
2021–22F
2022–23F
Notes: 1. Annual value of commodity exports, free on board (fob).
2. CAGR = Compound annual growth rate.
Sources: Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, Office of the Chief
Economist, 2022, Resources and Energy Quarterly, December 2021; Austrade

Australia’s power surge Australia’s renewable energy generation volumes and world rankings
1980 to 2020
in wind and solar
Australia’s gross energy production 2020
Renewables deliver a fast-growing share of World ranking World share CAGR 1 %
Australian energy production. They accounted % 2010 to 2020
for a record 25% of total electricity generation Bioenergy 27 0.5% 1.9%
in 2020. Australian companies have dramatically Solar 7 2.5% 49.0%
increased production of renewable energy since Wind energy 12 1.3% 15.0%
2010. Wind and solar have overtaken hydro in Hydropower 35 0.3% 1.2%
terms of energy production. Currently, Australia 70 Total 19 0.8% 10.7%

25%
25
is the world’s seventh largest producer of solar

energy. Innovation in solar energy is attracting 60
major investment. Australia is set to export 20
Percentage of total electricity generation

solar power from Darwin to Singapore from
50
2027.
Renewables: as a percentage of total electricity generation (right-hand axis)
15% 15
40
Terawatt–hour 30
10
9%
20
5
10
Notes: 1. CAGR = Compound annual growth rate.

0 0
Sources: U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2021, International energy
statistics; Austrade 1980 1990 2000 2010 2019 2020

A top agri-exporter to Australia’s top 15 export destinations for food and fibre1 , 2020–21
A$ billion
Asian markets
Food and fibre exports reached A$49 billion in 1. China $10.6 5. Korea $3.1
3. US $3.8
2020–21. Asia is a major customer. 6. Vietnam $2.4 2. Japan $4.8
Of Australia’s 15 top food markets, 11 are 15. UK $0.8
in the Asia region2, and they account for
two-thirds of the nation’s agrifoods exports.
With a reputation for high agricultural
standards and a well-regulated food industry,
Australian produce commands premium prices.
10. Hong Kong SAR $1.2
Meanwhile, Australia’s network of regional free
13. Philippines $1.0
trade agreements gives Australian growers
9. Malaysia $1.2
preferential access to Asian markets.
12. Saudi Arabia $1.2 4. Indonesia $3.4
14. UAE $0.8
8. Thailand $1.2
7. New Zealand $1.7
11. Singapore $1.2
Notes: 1. Export value of Australian food and fibre is defined as the total
export value of primary products (unprocessed – food & live animals total);
primary products (unprocessed – Other – Hides skins & furskins raw); primary
products (unprocessed – Other – Textile fibres unprocessed & waste); and
primary products (processed – food total). 2. The Asian region is defined as
Asia and Oceania.
Sources: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2021, Trade statistical pivot
table; Austrade

A clean, green source of Australia’s major agricultural commodity exports, 2020–21E
food and natural fibres Export value (A$ billion)
Farm, fisheries and forestry

production = A$73.2 billion
Commodity A$ billion
Cattle and calves 6 12.6
Global markets have developed a taste for high- Wheat 10.3
value, branded, premium Australian produce. $8.4 Fruit and nuts (excl. grapes) 5.2
Beef is the biggest export earner, generating Milk 7
4.4
A$8.4 billion of overseas earnings in 2020–21. Vegetables 4.3
Australia is also a major exporter of wheat, Lambs 8 3.5

$6.8
Barley 3.1
wool, wine, lamb, barley, canola, sugar, fruit, live
Canola 3.1
cattle, mutton, tree nuts, cheese, raw cotton
Poultry 2.9
and chickpeas. Together, these top 15 products
Wool9 2.5
contributed almost 70% of the total value of Nursery, cut flowers and turf 1.7
Australia’s A$53 billion of agricultural exports in Cotton lint and cottonseed10 1.6
2020–21. Cattle exported live11 1.5
Pigs 8 1.5
Softwood 1.4
$2.7
$2.6
$2.5 $2.4
$2.2
$1.6
$1.4
Notes: 1. Includes wheat flour. 2. Greasy wool exports shown on a balance of $1.2
$1.0
payments basis before 2015–16. 3. Includes malt. 4. Includes buffalo. $0.9 $0.9
5. Excludes cotton waste and linters. 6. Includes dairy cattle and excludes skin $0.6 $0.6
and hide values. 7. Milk intake by factories and valued at the farm gate.
8. Excludes skin and hide values. 9. Shorn, dead and fellmongered wool, and
wool exported on skins. 10. Value delivered to gin. 11. Includes all bovine for
Chickpeas
Lamb
Cheese
Beef and veal
Wheat¹
Wool²
Wine
Barley3
Canola
Sugar
Fruit
Live feeder/
slaughter cattle4
Mutton
Raw cotton5
Tree nuts
feeder/slaughter, breeding and dairy purposes.
E = ABARES estimate.
Sources: Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and
Sciences, 2021, Agricultural commodities – Statistical Tables 13 and 17;
Austrade

Sophisticated financial Global significance of Australia’s financial markets
markets and a large

managed funds sector
US$7.7 trillion2 US$2.3 trillion5
Australia is home to the world’s sixth largest Assets of Australian Pension assets*
financial institutions*
pool of managed funds and ninth largest 5th largest in the world
Five times Australia’s nominal GDP
stock market. 1 Australia’s US$2.5 trillion *2020
*June 2021
managed funds sector is underpinned by a
mandated retirement savings scheme, called
superannuation. This has created the fifth
largest pension pool in the world. US$2.5 trillion3 US$119 billion6
Fund assets under OTC foreign exchange daily
management* average turnover*
6th largest in the world 10th largest in the world
2nd largest in the Asia-Oceania region 5th largest in the Asia-Oceania region
*September 2021 *April 2019
US$1.6 trillion1,4 US$2.4 trillion7

Stock market* International and domestic debt
Note: 1. As measured by market capitalisation of freely floating stocks.
securities outstanding*
Sources: 2. Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), 2021, Assets of Financial 9th largest in the world
Institutions; Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 2021, Managed Funds; 10th largest in the world
Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, 2021, Quarterly general insurance 3rd largest in the Asia-Oceania region
performance statistics; ABS, 2021, Assets and Liabilities of Australian 3rd largest in the Asia-Oceania region
*December 2021
Securitisers; ABS, 2021, Australian National Accounts: National Income, *Total outstanding value, June 2021
Expenditure and Product; RBA, 2021, Exchange Rates. 3. Investment Company
Institute, 2022, Worldwide Market Data. 4. Standard & Poor’s, 2021, S&P
Dow Jones Indices World-By-Numbers. 5. Thinking Ahead Institute, Willis
Towers, Watson, 2021, Global Pension Assets Study. 6. Bank for International
Settlements, 2019, Triennial Central Bank Survey of Foreign Exchange and OTC
Derivatives Markets. 7. Bank for International Settlements, 2021, Debt securities
statistics; Austrade

Australia’s A$10 trillion Assets of Australian financial institutions (AFIs), 2000 to 2021
financial sector
Australian financial markets are large relative Assets of financial institutions CAGR, June 2001 Percentage in
to the overall size of the economy. The total to June 2021 2021 Q2
ADIs 1 9.7% 52%
estimated value of all financial assets rose to
Insurers and managed funds 9.1% 44%
A$10 trillion (about US$8 trillion) in the June
Other2 3.2% 5%
2021 quarter. This equates to around five times Australian financial institutions (AFI), total 8.9% 100%
the value of Australia’s GDP. The financial sector
has grown by 9% per year on average over the 600
10
past 20 years, almost doubling its share of the ADIs1
Australian economy. Finance is now the second Insurers and managed funds
largest contributor to the country’s gross value Other2

498%
8 AFI assets % of GDP (right-hand axis)
added. 3
Total AFI assets as a percentage of GDP

400
Assets (A$ trillion)

6
Notes: 1. Include banks, credit unions and building societies; other authorised
deposit-taking institutions. 2. Other: Money market corporations (broker-
dealers); finance companies (including general financiers and pastoral finance
companies); and securitisers. 3. Gross value added provides a dollar value for 4 253%
the amount of goods and services that have been produced in a country, minus
200
the cost of all inputs and raw materials that are directly attributable to that
production.
CAGR = Compound annual growth rate.
ADIs = Authorised Deposit-taking Institutions 2
Sources: Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), 2021, Assets of Financial
Institutions; Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 2021, Managed Funds;
Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, 2021, Quarterly general insurance
performance statistics; ABS, 2021, Assets and Liabilities of Australian
Securitisers; ABS, 2021, Australian National Accounts: National Income, 0 0
Expenditure and Product; RBA, 2021, Exchange Rates; Austrade June 2000 June 2005 June 2010 June 2015 June 2020 June 2021

Digital Consumer Index, 2021
Leaders in digital
adoption
Australian shoppers are digitally savvy Economy 2021 Rank 2021 Index
consumers. This has created one of the world’s
Korea 1 75
most vibrant digital markets. Euromonitor
placed Australia fourth in its 2021 Digital UK 2 69
Consumer Index, well above many economies in US 3 68
the region including Hong Kong, Japan and all Australia 4 67

major ASEAN countries. Australia has advanced UAE 5 65
IT infrastructure and mobile connectivity by
Denmark 6 64
international standards. This prepared citizens
Netherlands 7 63
for remote working and online shopping during
New Zealand 8 63
the pandemic. Australian financial regulation
encourages online innovation, such as digital Singapore 9 63
payments, buy-now, pay-later purchasing, and Israel 10 62
mobile digital wallets. Developed economies – 60
Belgium 11 61.4
Hong Kong SAR 12 61.2
Japan 13 61.0
Sweden 14 60.9
Norway 15 60.1
Sources: Euromonitor, 2021, 2021 Digital Consumer Index Methodology and

Data Download; Austrade

A global hub for higher International higher education enrolments by regional grouping1
Students on student visas only, year to September 20212
education and skills
training
Australia is a top destination for students 20195 2021 5
who travel overseas for tertiary education. 182.5k Total international higher education enrolments 428,561 356,143
In 2021, Australia attracted around 680,000 170.0k

Total higher education enrolments, % annual change 11.6% -13.4%
international student enrolments. This intake % share of all Asian students (excluding Middle East) 90.5% 90.3%
Top five broad fields of study 351,276 281,610

was spread across universities, technical 149.1k
Management and commerce 169,919 123,285
colleges, vocational education training colleges,
Information technology 67,639 55,735
English language courses and schools. About
Society and culture 31,314 34,304
90% of overseas students enrolled in higher Health 36,522 34,193
106.0k
education in Australia are from Asian countries. Engineering and related technologies 45,882 34,093
2019 2021
56.1k
45.8k
Notes: 1. Enrolment numbers reflect international student enrolments (by

country of citizenship). 2. 2021 data contains statistics relating to enrolments
in higher education courses in each Australian Higher Education Provider 11.9k 11.1k 10.3k 8.0k 8.4k 7.3k
and is correct as the September 2021 release of student data (revised 6.0k 4.5k 3.3k 2.6k 1.0k 0.9k
monthly). 2021 data should be interpreted with caution. Under current 0.0k 0.0k
COVID-19 conditions, an enrolment does not confirm if a student was in
Northeast Southern and Southeast Americas North Africa Sub-Saharan North-West Southern Oceania and Other4
Australia at the time of reporting. 3. Excludes enrolments from New Zealand
Asia Central Asia Asia and the Africa Europe and Eastern Antarctica3
as students do not require an international student visa to study in Australia.
Middle East Europe
4. ‘Other’ includes enrolments from countries not known or where no further
information was provided. 5. From January to September due to availability of
information.
Sources: : Austrade, 2021, Market Information Package

Domestic tourism Domestic and international visitor spend in Australia from 2010 to 2020
and Australia’s
travel industry 160
International Domestic
138.5
140
124.5
Expenditure (A$ billion)

120 113.2 89% of tourism
106.5 spend comes
Domestic tourism helped sustain Australian 99.9
100 94.3 from domestic
89.0
travel and hospitality while international borders 82.3
86.6 travellers in 2020.
78.4 Australian tourism
were closed. State borders were mostly open 80 70.9 is underpinned by
strong, growing
in the first half of 2021 and this released pent- 60 domestic and
international
up demand. In May 2021, spending on domestic 40 demand.
overnight trips exceeded pre-pandemic levels
20
by 9%. This was a remarkable improvement from
0
April 2020 when spending was down 91% on a 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
year earlier. Renewed lockdowns in mid-to-late Change in domestic overnight spend, months compared with 2019
2021 affected the recovery. Thanks to high Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov
vaccine uptakes, however, lockdowns across 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21
9%
states have lifted and international arrivals have 7%
started to increase. Preliminary data on trip 0

-6%
rates indicate a recovery in tourism is already -9%
-17% -18%
underway. -20 -19%
Percentage change
-30%
-34%
-40 -39%
-43%
-52% -51%
-53%
-56%
-60 -59%
-64%
-65%
-80
-82%
-91%
Sources: Tourism Research Australia, 2021, unpublished data; Austrade
-100

03 Innovation & skills
Australia’s roll call of innovation 29

Australia’s thriving tech sector 30
A competitive, highly skilled workforce 31
Top marks for higher education 32
Asia’s No. 2 hotspot for fintech development 33
Australia invests in education 34
High-impact research across multiple fields 35
A pioneer in health sciences and practical medicine 36
Australia’s top-ranking academic institutions 37
A leading contributor to UN Sustainable Development Goals 38
A magnet for ambitious, overseas talent 39

03 Innovation & skills
Highly skilled, tech-savvy talent that attracts global enterprise
Australia is home to a high-skill, high-talent Our tech-hungry culture thrives on innovation.

workforce. This makes us one of the most Investors and global tech developers know that
innovative countries in the world. Our scientific Australian consumers are technology early
institutions rank in the world’s top 1% in 15 adopters who are open to change. This makes us
individual fields of research – including space a great market to trial and pioneer new digital
science, physics, computer science and clinical services.
medicine.
The results are apparent in global rankings.
Our outsized A$167 billion technology sector Euromonitor ranks Australians fourth in the
has grown 26% since the onset of the pandemic. world for digital consumption. Australia is now
If it were a single sector, technology would now ranked second in Asia for fintech development,
be the third largest contributor to Australian and sixth globally. We score highly in science
GDP. Approximately 98% of Australian tech too. According to Nature, Australia is one of the
firms are small and medium-sized enterprises. top 10 countries in the world for contributing to
life sciences research.

Australia’s roll call of Australia’s innovation credentials
innovation
Australia is a nation of inventors and
entrepreneurs. Our innovations include the
Ranked 2nd Top 1%
electronic pacemaker (1926), the ‘black box’ of the world’s scientific institutions
in the Robot Olympics1
flight recorder (1958), ultrasound (1961), in 15 of 22 research fields4
multi-channel cochlear implants (1970s), the
polymer banknote (1988), Wi-Fi (1990s), Google
Maps (2003) and a cervical cancer vaccine
(2006). With dynamic links between academia,
industry and public services, Australia welcomes Ranked 4th About 68%
investment in its intellectual capital to help lay for number of universities in of large businesses (200 or more
the groundwork for future discoveries. the world’s top 1002 employees) are ‘innovation-active’5
3 universities Around 47%

In the Top 100 academic institutions of Australia’s workforce has a
in artificial intelligence3 tertiary qualification6
Sources: 1. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation

(CSIRO), 2021, Robotics experts led by Australia’s national science agency.
2. Shanghai Ranking Consultancy, 2021, Academic Ranking of World
Universities. 3. Nature Index, 2020 Artificial Intelligence. 4. CSIRO, 2021, CSIRO
Annual Report 2020–21. 5. Department of Innovation, Industry and Science,
2021, Australian Innovation System Monitor. 6. Australian Bureau of Statistics,
2021, Education and Work, Australia. 7. Austrade

The technology sector’s contribution to Australian GDP
Australia’s thriving tech
A$ billion
sector
Australia’s entrepreneurs have created Direct contribution Indirect contribution
one of the southern hemisphere’s biggest 861,000
$167bn persons employed
technology industries. If it were classified as 79%
$76bn
a single industry, it would be the third largest +26%
contributor to GDP in Australia – ahead of the

$133bn
65,000
jobs were created
health and construction sectors. The tech $124bn
$57bn during the
sector’s economic contribution to GDP has COVID-19 crisis
$110bn $52bn
increased 79% since 2016–17 to reach A$167 $94bn $47bn
billion in 2020–21. This equates to around 8.5%
$41bn $92bn
120%
of GDP. Rapid digital adoption during COVID-19 increase in market
capitalisation
led to a 26% growth (A$34 billion) in the value of $76bn (Australian stock
$72bn
market) from June
Australia’s technology sector in the year to June $63bn 2019 to June 2021
$53bn
2021.
98%
of tech firms
are SMEs
2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21
Note: The direct tech sector is defined as internet publishing and broadcasting,
telecommunications services, internet service providers, web search portals,
data processing services, and computer system design and related services.
Sources: Tech Council of Australia, 2021, The Economic Contribution of
Australia’s Tech Sector; Austrade

A competitive, highly Skilled workforce and innovation indicators – Global rankings
skilled workforce
Australia US UK France Germany Japan Korea China India Singapore
Australia’s skilled and educated workforce is highly
The Global Innovation Index 2021 Ranking (132 economies) 8 in:
competitive in global comparisons. Australia ranks
School life expectancy, years 1 29 16 39 18 na 26 88 95 25
in the top six for university education systems
Tertiary enrolment, % population 3 11 48 38 33 na 4 57 88 10
according to a 2021 study by the International
Tertiary inbound mobility, % enrolment 4 47 8 28 21 49 71 101 108 7
Institute for Management Development. Australia Entertainment and media market 1
6 1 8 17 12 5 16 37 59 20
also ranks eighth in the world on the UN’s Human Scientific and technical articles2 6 46 13 36 35 50 29 42 84 33
Development Index, which measures literacy and Government's online service 7 7 6 18 59 12 1 12 24 5
education. According to the World Intellectual Citable documents H-index 3
9 1 1 5 3 6 17 13 21 22
Property Organization’s Global Innovation Index, E-participation4 9 1 6 18 57 4 1 9 29 6
Australia’s scientific publication scores are among Number of registered internet domains 5 9 1 10 18 14 31 43 74 97 23
the world’s highest. We also score in the top 10

IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2021 Ranking (64 economies)9 in:
for scientific and technical articles in the ‘citable University education index6 6 1 2 8 5 12 20 3 17 37
documents’ H-index. Foreign labour force – migrant stock 8 21 na 28 18 52 48 63 60 4
Women on boards 11 16 10 2 23 42 49 37 32 29
The Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2021 Ranking (134 economies)10 in:
Professional management 7 10 13 24 22 12 53 28 48 3
Notes: 1. Per 1,000 people, aged 15–69. 2. Number of scientific and technical
journal articles per billion dollars of GDP, measured at purchasing power parity. High-level skills, global knowledge 7 2 4 22 29 23 27 39 69 1
3. A numerical indicator of how productive and influential a researcher is.
ICT infrastructure 8 27 3 21 26 35 19 41 73 5
4. The E-Participation Index is derived from the United Nations E-Government
Survey, which focuses on government use of online services. 5. Generic top-level Talent impact, global knowledge 12 6 9 19 24 39 18 15 47 11
domains per 1,000 people, aged 15-69. 6. Country score calculated from Times
Higher Education university ranking. 7. Index combines economic, social and
educational indicators. United Nations Human Development Report 2020 Ranking (189 economies)11:
Sources: 8. World Intellectual Property Organization, 2021, Global Innovation
Human Development Index7 8 17 13 26 6 19 23 85 131 11
Index 2021; 9. International Institute for Management Development, 2021,
IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2021; 10. INSEAD, 2021, The Global
Talent Competitiveness Index 2021; 11. United Nations, 2020, Human
Development Report; Austrade

Percentage of employed persons with tertiary education by industry1 – May 2021
Top marks for higher
education
Professional, scientific & technical services
Australia has one of the world’s most highly 75
educated workforces. Approximately 47% of Education & training 74
employed people hold a tertiary qualification or Financial & insurance services 72
an advanced diploma. This ratio has increased Information media & telecommunications 64
rapidly: a decade ago, it was just 37%. Today, Healthcare & social assistance 64
at least 70% of the Australian workforce holds Public administration & safety 62
an advanced diploma or a higher qualification Arts & recreation services 52
in a critical sector. These critical sectors
Rental, hiring & real estate services 51
include professional, scientific and technical
Electricity, gas, water & waste services 47
services; education and training; or financial and
Administrative & support services 36
insurance services.
Wholesale trade 34
Manufacturing 33
Mining 31
Other services 31
Transport, postal & warehousing 31
Retail trade 29
Accommodation & food services 27
Agriculture, forestry & fishing 25
Construction 21
All industry average: 37% (May 2011) All industry average: 47% (May 2021)
Notes: 1. Tertiary education refers to Advanced Diploma/Diploma or higher.

Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021, Education and Work, accessed
23 December 2021; Austrade

Global fintech ranking by economy, 2021
Asia’s No. 2 hotspot for
fintech development
Australia is a fintech powerhouse, with around 9. Germany, s 3 7. Sweden, Same
700 fintech companies. According to recent
industry analysis, Australia’s fintech industry 1. US, Same
8. Netherlands t 2 13. Finland, s 1
placed sixth in global rankings and second in
the Asia-Pacific region. Our global performance 2. UK, Same
reflects a vibrant fintech culture. Australian 11. Estonia, t 1
10. Lithuania, t 6
businesses, government agencies and citizens 12. Canada, t 3
are all early adopters. We have a stable and
15. China, s 6
trusted regulatory system that is open to 3. Israel, s 9
innovation. We also have an outsized financial 5. Switzerland, Same
sector that manages a huge pool of assets.

Put together, these factors make Australia a
natural home for fintech investment.
14. Brazil, s 5
4. Singapore, t 1
6. Australia, s 2
Notes: 1. The number before the economy represents the ranking.

2. ↑↓ or ‘Same’ indicates the change against the ranking published in 2020.
Sources: Findexable, 2021, Global Fintech Index; Austrade

Australia invests Expenditure on educational institutions across OECD countries1
As a percentage of GDP, 20182
in education
Australia ranks seventh for spending on Total tertiary education
educational institutions, among OECD Primary, secondary education and
countries. At 5.9% of GDP, spending on 6.6 6.6
post-secondary non-tertiary education
education institutions in Australia exceeds 6.2 6.2

6.1
6.0 5.9
the OECD average of 4.9%. Comparatively, 5.9
5.5
Australia receives even higher marks for tertiary 5.2 5.1 5.1
4.9 OECD average (4.9%)
education. Spending on higher education 4.6
increased from 1.5% of GDP in 2005 to 1.9% in 4.3 4.3
4.1
4.0
2018. This raised Australia to sixth place among
OECD countries. 3.3 3.3
Norway (1)
Chile (2)
Israel (3)
New Zealand (4)
UK (5)
US (6)
Australia (7)
Canada (8)
Sweden (11)
Denmark (14)
Korea (16)
Colombia (19)
Mexico (22)
Spain (24)
Japan (30)
Luxembourg (35)
Ireland (36)
Germany (25)
Italy (28)
Finland (15)
Notes: 1. Expenditure on all public and private institutions. Values of
expenditure are expressed in USD-equivalent, after converting local
currencies using purchasing-power parity (PPP) conversion factors.
2. Latest data available from OECD database.
OECD.Stat; Austrade

High-impact research Relative impacts of Australian scientific publications by research field, 2016–20
across multiple fields

Global average: 1.0
Our scientific research has a growing Space science 1.80
reputation. Australian research publications Physics 1.72
achieve an impact that is at least 20% above Computer science 1.67
Clinical medicine 1.62

the global average in 20 out of 22 fields of
Materials science 1.54
academic research. Australia’s four strongest
Molecular Biology & Genetics 1.53
categories of published research are in space
Engineering 1.51 Very high index
science, physics, computer science and clinical
Microbiology 1.46
medicine. The 20 academic categories where
Multidisciplinary 1.43
Australia outscores the global average show a
Environment/Ecology 1.41
wide diversity of disciplines and topics with a Plant & Animal Science 1.39
practical focus. Biology & Biochemistry 1.39
Chemistry 1.38
Geosciences 1.37
Neuroscience & Behavior 1.29
Immunology 1.28
Psychiatry/Psychology 1.26
Pharmacology & Toxicology 1.25
Mathematics 1.25
Agricultural Sciences 1.24 High index
Social sciences, general 1.17
Economics & business 1.14
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
Sources: InCitesTM, Clarivate Analytics, 2021, InCities dataset, accessed 29

October 2021; Austrade

A pioneer in health Health research by country1
Life science2 count index, 1 September 2020 – 31 August 2021
sciences and practical
medicine
12,785
Australia is a global top 10 contributor to
life science research. According to an index
published by Nature – one of the world’s oldest
3,576
science journals – Australian researchers and
institutes published 1,207 academic articles in 3,183 3,139
accredited journals in 2020–21.
1,729
1,481
1,345
1,263 1,207
841
541
481
338 319 298 293 244 217
145
48
Norway (20)
US (1)
UK (2)
China (3)
Germany (4)
France (5)
Canada (6)
Japan (7)
Australia (9)
Korea (16)
Singapore (19)
Brazil (22)
New Zealand (30)
UAE (44)
India (23)
Finland (21)
Sweden (12)
Israel (15)
Russia (25)
Switzerland (8)
Notes: 1. The number in brackets indicates the country’s ranking across 162
economies. 2. This list of life sciences comprises the branches of science that
involve the scientific study of life and organisms – such as microorganisms,
plants, and animals including human beings.
Sources: Nature, 2021, Life Science Index; Austrade

Australia’s top-ranking Academic ranking of world universities, 2021
academic institutions
Seven Australian universities are in the world’s Economies Top 100 Top 200 Top 300 Top 400 Top 500 501 to Top 1 to
1000 Top 1000
top 100, according to the 2021 Academic
1 US 40 62 89 110 129 71 200
Ranking of World Universities (ARWU), published 2 UK 8 20 25 33 38 27 65
by the Shanghai Ranking Consultancy. In 2021, 3 China 7 28 42 64 84 96 180
24 Australian universities were listed in the 4 Australia 7 8 17 22 24 10 34

5 Switzerland 5 7 7 7 7 3 10
ARWU top 500 ranking, compared with just 14
6 Germany 4 10 20 24 28 22 50
in 2004. The top performers are: University 7 Canada 4 8 12 18 20 8 28
of Melbourne; University of Queensland; 8 France 4 8 11 15 17 13 30
9 Netherlands 3 9 10 11 12 1 13
University of New South Wales; University of
10 Japan 3 7 9 10 12 26 38
Sydney; Australian National University; Monash 11 Sweden 3 5 7 8 11 2 13
University; and University of Western Australia. 12 Israel 3 4 4 4 6 1 7
13 Belgium 2 4 6 7 7 1 8
14 Denmark 2 3 3 5 5 1 6
15 Singapore 2 2 2 2 2 2 4
16 Norway 1 2 2 3 3 3 6
17 Finland 1 1 1 3 4 3 7
18 Russia 1 1 1 2 2 7 9
19 Italy 0 4 8 10 19 26 45
20 Saudi Arabia 0 2 3 3 4 2 6
21 Korea 0 1 6 8 11 19 30
22 Spain 0 1 4 8 12 27 39
23 Austria 0 1 3 4 7 6 13
24 Brazil 0 1 1 4 6 15 21
Note: 1.Economies were ranked according to the number of universities in the

25 Ireland 0 1 1 3 4 2 6
top 100. For evenly ranked economies, the number of universities in the top Top 1 to 25 economies 100 200 294 388 474 394 868
200 and top 300 was used as a tiebreaker. Top 26 to 63 economies 0 0 6 12 26 106 132
Sources: Shanghai Ranking Consultancy, 2021, The Academic Ranking of Total 100 200 300 400 500 500 1,000
World Universities; accessed 23 December 2021; Austrade

A leading contributor Top 100 Universities Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, 2021
Implementing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)1
to UN Sustainable
Development Goals
Australian universities are good global citizens Australia Global ranking
Countries with 2 universities
when it comes to tackling poverty, gender, Denmark, Italy, Mexico, Portugal,
Saudi Arabia, Korea, Sweden Countries with University of Sydney 2
equality and climate change. This makes and Thailand 1 university: RMIT University 3
Australian universities attractive partners for Brazil, China,
La Trobe University 4
Egypt, India,
Countries
collaborative research into sustainability, global with 4 Iran, Lebanon, University of Wollongong 6
universities Malaysia and
development and technology. It also encourages South Africa University of Newcastle 12
Indonesia,
overseas students to apply to Australian New Zealand, Western Sydney University 17
Ireland, Spain
universities. According to the UK’s Times Higher Monash University 18
Education Impact Rankings, 17 Australian University of the Sunshine Coast 26

Griffith University 38
universities made it into the top 100 for having
Queensland University of Technology 43
an impact on UN Sustainable Development US: 9 universities
Australian Catholic University 54
Goals. UK: 20 universities
University of Canberra 57
University of Tasmania 76
Deakin University 79
Macquarie University 82
James Cook University 91
Canada: 15 universities
Australia: 17 universities UNSW Sydney 96
Notes: 1. To put together the ranking, the Times Higher Education mapped
how universities around the world are implementing the United Nations’ 17
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs are a global call to action
to tackle poverty, climate change and inequality. Universities were invited
to submit data on how they were progressing on the SDGs. The 2021 Impact
Rankings is the third edition and the overall ranking includes 1,115 universities
from 94 countries/regions.
Sources: The Times Higher Education, 2021, Impact Rankings; Austrade

A magnet for ambitious, Foreign-born population across OECD countries, 2000 and 20201
As a percentage of total population
overseas talent
Australia attracts some of the world’s best 48
talent. In 2020, Australia had the second
highest proportion of foreign-born citizens 2020
among countries in the Organisation for 2000
Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD). Approximately 30% of our population
was born overseas. This is twice the average
30
for OECD countries. Migrants and diaspora 30
communities contribute directly to Australian 27
trade via knowledge of overseas markets and

vital language skills. Citizens with links to Asia 21 21
20 20
help Australian businesses expand trade across 18 18
the Asia-Pacific region. 15

16 16
14 14 14 14
13
12
11
1 2 2
Norway (13)
Mexico (35)
Japan (34)
Korea (32)
Chile (27)
Denmark (24)
Greece (22)
France (20)
Netherlands (17)
UK (16)
OECD average
Spain (14)
Belgium (11)
Ireland (10)
Austria (8)
Sweden (7)
Canada (5)
Israel² (6)
New Zealand (4)
Switzerland (3)
Australia (2)
Luxembourg (1)
USA (18)
Germany (12)
Notes: 1. Data refers to 2000 or the closest available year, and to 2020 or the
most recent available year. The OECD information is the simple average based on
rates presented. For Japan and Korea, the data refers to the foreign population
rather than the foreign-born population. 2. Israel’s high fertility rate and lower
net migration rate reduced its percentage of foreign-born population.
International Migration Outlook; Austrade

04 Global ties
Asian markets and export success 42

Strong trade links across the Asian region 43
Diverse exports provide resilience in a difficult year 44
A high-growth destination for A$4 trillion of foreign investment 45
A magnet for investment from North America, Europe and Asia 46
Foreign direct investment and Australia’s services sector 47
An open trading economy for services 48
A broad network of trade agreements 49

04 Global ties
An open economy deeply integrated in global trade
Australia is a trading nation. We have 16 the agreement links ASEAN (Association of

free trade agreements (FTAs) and have led Southeast Asian Nations) with China, Japan
the formation of multiple, regional trade and South Korea – as well as Australia and
agreements in the Asia-Pacific region. New Zealand.
Low tariffs and preferential access to Asian
Investment helps power our major industries,
markets make us a natural gateway for global
especially in resources and energy. Foreign
trade. Over 70% of our trade is now with fast-
direct investment (FDI) has grown by
growing economies in the Asia-Pacific region.
approximately 8% per year for the past two
As a nation, we seek new trading opportunities. decades and has now topped A$1 trillion.
January 2022 marked the formal start of the Our top national investors are from the US
world’s largest trade agreement, the Regional (19%), Japan (13%) and the UK (12%). But
Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). investment from other parts of Asia is rising
Covering nearly a third of global output, quickly – especially from Southeast Asia.

Asian markets and Australia’s top 15 export markets, 2020
A$ billion
export success
Close integration with dynamic economies in 14. Germany $4.9 1. China $158.7 3. US $27.5
Asia drives wealth creation in Australia. Twelve 9. Taiwan $10.7
4. Korea $25.1
of Australia’s top 15 export markets are in the
Asian region, generating total exports worth 5. UK $18.8
A$326 billion in 2020. This represents three-

quarters of Australia’s total exports of goods
and services. China receives about 36% of
exports. More than 30% collectively go to Japan,
Korea, the US, the UK and India. ASEAN is also 2. Japan $46.6
a significant market, accounting for 11% of

10. Hong Kong SAR $9.3
Australia’s total exports.
12. Vietnam $8.0
7. Singapore $16.0
13. Indonesia $7.1
Total:
6. India $17.0 $436
15. Thailand $4.7 8. New Zealand $13.8
11. Malaysia $8.8
Note: The Asian region is defined as Asia and Oceania.

Sources: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2021, Trade statistics,
Australia’s Trade in goods and services: 2020; Austrade

Strong trade links across Australia’s exports and imports of goods and services
Current prices (A$ billion)
the Asian region
Share (%) Share (%) % Growth
Australia is a highly globalised economy, with trade Rank Selected economies 2017 2018 2019 2020 of GDP in of trade in 2019 to 5-year
accounting for over 40% of nominal GDP. Asian 2020 2020 2020 CAGR
1 China 183.5 214.8 251.3 244.8 12.4 30.7 -2.6 10.1

partners accounted for two-thirds of Australia’s
2 US 68.3 74.0 81.0 72.9 3.7 9.1 -10.0 0.4
total exports. This reflects Australia’s geographical
3 Japan 72.0 85.7 86.7 66.5 3.4 8.3 -23.3 0.4
good fortune and our free trade agreements with
4 Korea 55.3 41.0 41.3 34.8 1.8 4.4 -15.8 -0.9
key Asian economies. China remained Australia’s 5 UK 27.4 27.2 38.6 31.8 1.6 4.0 -17.7 5.3
largest trading partner in 2020, accounting for 6 Singapore 25.3 32.0 33.2 27.0 1.4 3.4 -18.8 0.7
around 31% of total two-way trade. Japan and 7 India 27.6 30.4 29.2 24.4 1.2 3.1 -16.4 3.6
Korea continue to be important trade partners, 8 New Zealand 27.6 29.3 31.1 23.7 1.2 3.0 -23.7 -1.0
representing around 13% of total trade. Many 9 Germany 21.0 23.2 22.9 21.2 1.1 2.7 -7.5 2.3
10 Thailand 23.0 25.7 23.1 19.6 1.0 2.5 -15.1 -1.7

Australian exporters have diversified their markets.
11 Malaysia 20.8 24.1 24.0 19.4 1.0 2.4 -19.2 -0.1
For example, the ASEAN region now accounts for
12 Taiwan 15.1 17.6 20.2 16.1 0.8 2.0 -20.2 4.9
almost 13% of total trade. Australia also maintains
13 Vietnam 12.9 14.6 15.5 14.6 0.7 1.8 -5.6 6.9
strong trading links with traditional partners. The 14 Indonesia 16.4 17.6 17.7 12.9 0.7 1.6 -27.3 -4.1
EU and the UK account for 13% of total trade. The 15 Hong Kong SAR 18.9 17.8 15.0 12.7 0.6 1.6 -14.9 -4.4
US accounts for another 9%. Other economies 149.7 179.2 187.3 154.6 7.8 19.4 -17.4 0.7
Total all economies 1

764.8 854.4 918.0 796.9 40.4 100.0 -13.2 3.1
By regions and groups

Notes: 1. Totals may not always add up exactly due to rounding. Refer to the
DFAT website (www.dfat.gov.au/trade/Pages/trade-and-investment) for more APEC2 564.1 621.5 670.9 590.2 29.9 74.1 -12.0 3.6
information. 2. Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation. 3. Regional Comprehensive RCEP 3
443.0 491.6 532.4 470.9 23.9 59.1 -11.6 4.6
Economic Partnership. 4. Association of South East Asian Nations.
5. The Asian region is defined as Asia and Oceania. ASEAN4 104.6 120.7 122.0 101.1 5.1 12.7 -17.1 0.5
CAGR = compound annual growth rate. EU plus UK 101.3 110.0 123.3 105.7 5.4 13.3 -14.3 2.6
SAR = Special administrative region of China.
Sources: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2021, Trade statistics,
Australia’s goods and services by top 15 partners 2021; Australian Bureau of
Statistics, 2021, Australian National Accounts: National Income, Expenditure
and Product, Table 3; Austrade

Diverse exports Australia’s trade in goods and services, 2020
Total two-way trade in 2020: A$798 billion
provide resilience in Australia’s trade by level of processing1 A$ billion Change Top 15 commodities (goods & services)1 A$ billion Change
a difficult year Exports of goods & services

Primary products2
2019
305.9
2020
282.4
%
-7.7
Exports of goods & services
Rank Commodity
2019 2020 %
Unprocessed food 13.9 14.4 3.6 1 Iron ores & concentrates 96.2 116.7 21.4
Processed food 30.4 28.0 -8.1 2 Coal 63.9 43.4 -32.2

The value of Australia’s exports of goods 3 Natural gas 48.7 36.2 -25.6
Minerals 126.9 144.9 14.2
and services reached A$436 billion in 2020. Fuels 2
126.3 89.6 -29.0 4 Education-related travel services 5 40.3 31.7 -21.4
5 Gold 23.4 25.5 9.1
This represents a 12% decline in challenging Other primary 8.4 5.5 -34.2
6 Beef (fresh, chilled or frozen) 10.8 9.6 -11.2
times. Primary products accounted for 65% 7 Aluminium ores & conc (incl alumina) 9.8 8.3 -15.5
Manufactured products 54.6 47.8 -12.6
of total exports. The value of iron ore exports Simply transformed manufactures 16.9 14.6 -13.8
8 Copper ores & concentrates 6.3 7.1 13.1
9 Crude petroleum 9.5 6.2 -34.5
increased by 21% while coal exports fell by 32%. Elaborately transformed manufactures 37.7 33.2 -12.0
10 Professional services 5.9 5.5 -7.4
Beef exports also dropped as better seasonal 11 Telecom, computer & information services 5.2 5.2 -0.4
Other goods (incl gold) 29.4 32.9 12.1
conditions in some cattle regions prompted 12 Personal cultural & recreational services 1.7 5.1 206.3
Services 102.1 71.9 -29.6
13 Personal travel (excl education) services 22.6 5.1 -77.4
farmers to rebuild their herds. Falling beef prices Balance of payments adjustment 3 0.8 1.3 –
14 Meat (excl beef), (fresh, chilled or frozen) 5.5 5.0 -9.8
in some export markets also contributed to the Total exports 4 492.8 436.3 -11.5 15 Technical & other business services 5.3 4.8 -10.2
Imports of goods & services 2019 2020 %
result. Overall, services exports declined by 30%. Imports of goods & services 2019 2020 %
Primary products2 63.4 48.2 -23.9 Rank Commodity
This is because Australia’s services exports – Unprocessed food 2.5 2.6 5.0 1 Passenger motor vehicles 21.4 18.7 -12.7
including telecoms, IT and personal cultural & Processed food 19.2 19.4 1.4 2 Refined petroleum 25.1 15.9 -36.9
recreational services – didn’t quite compensate Minerals 1.0 1.1 12.9 3 Telecom equipment & parts 14.9 14.8 -0.7
4 Freight services 10.0 11.3 13.4
for the 77% fall in international travel. Fuels 38.9 23.2 -40.4
Other primary 1.9 1.8 -0.9 5 Computers 9.7 10.4 7.8
6 Gold 6.8 9.2 36.0
Notes: 1. Goods on a recorded trade basis, Services on balance of payments 7 Goods vehicles 9.8 9.0 -8.5
(BOP) basis, original data. 2. Includes the DFAT adjustment for coal (based Manufactured products 232.1 232.9 0.3
8 Personal travel (excl education) services 46.6 8.6 -81.4
on the ABS catalogue 5368.0, value adjustments, June 2021). 3. Balance of Simply transformed manufactures 15.4 17.4 12.8
payments adjustment includes low-value goods for imports and timing and 9 Professional services 8.1 8.5 4.4
Elaborately transformed manufactures 216.7 215.5 -0.6
valuation adjustments. 4. BOP basis. 5. Includes student expenditure on 10 Medicaments (incl veterinary) 7.7 8.3 7.0
tuition fees and living expenses. 11 Crude petroleum 12.3 6.0 -50.9
Sources: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2021, Trade Statistics, Other goods (incl gold) 12.0 12.5 4.0
12 Technical & other business services 5.4 5.8 6.8
Monthly trade data; Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2021, Trade Services 103.7 56.9 -45.2 13 Telecom, computer & information services 5.2 5.6 7.2
in goods and services, Australia’s goods and and services by top 25 exports
Balance of payments adjustment 3 13.9 11.3 – 14 Pharm products (excl medicaments) 5.4 5.6 3.2
2020; Austrade
Total imports 4 425.2 361.8 -14.9 15 Furniture, mattresses & cushions 5.0 5.2 4.8

A high-growth Total foreign investment stock in Australia, 2000–01 to 2020–21
Total value in June 2021: A$4.0 trillion
destination for
A$4 trillion of foreign
investment
4,000
197%
200
Other investment1 (left-hand axis, 8.0%)
Australia is a highly attractive destination for Direct investment (left-hand axis, 7.6%)
3,500 175
Foreign investment stock as a percentage of GDP

foreign direct investment (FDI). The total stock Total investment as a % of GDP (right-hand axis)
of FDI in Australia has risen by 7.6% per year
Foreign investment stock (A$ billion)

3,000 150
since 2000–01. It reached A$1 trillion around
2020. Other forms of investment – including 126%
2,500 125
portfolio investment – grew by 8% per year.
This takes total foreign investment to
2,000 100
A$4 trillion. As a percentage of GDP, the total
value of foreign investment stock grew from
1,500 75
126% in 2000 to about 200% in 2020. Foreign
investment was hit by drought, bushfires, and 50
1,000
lockdowns in 2020, but still grew by 2.5%.
500 25
0 0
2000–01
2001–02
2002–03
2003–04
2004–05
2005–06
2006–07
2007–08
2008–09
2009–10
2010–11
2011–12
2012–13
2013–14
2014–15
2015–16
2016–17
2017–18
2018–19
2019–20
2020–21
Notes: 1. Other investment is the balance of total investment less direct
investment. As such, it represents portfolio investment, financial derivatives
and other investment categories from the source ABS data.
Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 2021, International Investment
Position, Australia: Supplementary Statistics 2021, Table 2; ABS, 2021,
Australian National Accounts: National Income, Expenditure and Product,
Table 3; Austrade

A magnet for Australia’s main sources of foreign direct investment stock, 2010–2020
Total value in 2020: A$1 trillion
investment from
North America,
Europe and Asia Rank
2020 Country
2010
A$ billion
2019
A$ billion
2020
A$ billion
% Share
2020
% Change
2019–2020
% CAGR
2010–2020
Growth (A$bn)
2019–2020
% of Australian
GDP, 2020
1 US 110.3 221.4 196.3 19.1 -11.4 5.9 -25.1 10.0
2 Japan 51.1 115.9 131.8 12.8 13.7 9.9 15.9 6.7

Australia attracts investment from around the
3 UK 53.7 127.5 123.5 12.0 -3.2 8.7 -4.1 6.3
world. Over the past decade, foreign direct
4 Netherlands 27.6 56.6 52.8 5.1 -6.7 6.7 -3.8 2.7
investment (FDI) from Korea grew by 15% per 5 Canada 14.9 46.1 46.2 4.5 0.1 12.0 0.1 2.3
year; China by 13%; Canada by 12%; and Hong 6 China 12.9 46.9 44.3 4.3 -5.4 13.1 -2.5 2.3
Kong SAR by 10%. Australia’s top three overseas 7 Singapore 18.7 36.2 39.9 3.9 10.4 7.9 3.8 2.0
investors are the US, Japan and the UK, with 8 Bermuda 7.5 41.9 39.9 3.9 -4.9 18.2 -2.1 2.0
holdings equivalent to 19%, 13% and 12% of 9 British Virgin Islands np 22.2 22.5 2.2 1.6 np 0.4 1.1
10 Germany 16.8 23.1 21.7 2.1 -6.0 2.6 -1.4 1.1
total FDI in Australia respectively. Over the
11 Hong Kong SAR 6.6 17.3 16.8 1.6 -3.4 9.7 -0.6 0.9
same period, investment activities from ASEAN,
12 Malaysia 3.7 14.7 13.6 1.3 -7.3 14.0 -1.1 0.7
mainly Singapore and Malaysia, have been solid,
13 France 13.0 12.7 12.1 1.2 -4.8 -0.7 -0.6 0.6
growing by an average of 9% per annum to 14 Switzerland 20.9 11.6 11.6 1.1 0.0 -5.7 0.0 0.6
almost A$60 billion. This group was the fourth 15 Luxembourg 1.5 9.3 9.1 0.9 -2.9 20.0 -0.3 0.5
largest source of FDI in Australia. 16 Korea 2.1 7.1 8.0 0.8 12.4 14.6 0.9 0.4
Other economies 158.1 233.0 236.6 23.0 1.5 4.1 3.6 12.0
FDI stock – all economies 519.3 1,043.6 1,026.6 100.0 -1.6 7.1 -17.1 52.1
OECD 340.6 653.1 635.9 61.9 -2.6 6.4 -17.2 32.3
APEC 231.0 517.1 508.7 49.6 -1.6 8.2 -8.4 25.8
Notes: ASEAN = The Association of Southeast Asian Nations. CAGR = compound EU (excl. UK) 80.2 117.0 112.3 10.9 -4.1 3.4 -4.8 5.7
annual growth rate. SAR = Special administrative region of China.
ASEAN 25.8 56.1 59.0 5.7 5.0 8.6 2.8 3.0
Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 2021, International Investment
Position, Australia: Supplementary Statistics 2020, Table 2; ABS, 2021, FDI stock as a percentage of GDP 38.1 52.2 52.1
Australian National Accounts: National Income, Expenditure and Product, Table
3; Austrade

Foreign direct investment Foreign direct investment stock in Australia by industry – value and percentage share
Total value: A$1 trillion in 2020
and Australia’s
services sector
Foreign direct investment (FDI) powers
Others including Manufacturing1 A$234.7bn, 22.9%
productivity growth in Australia’s domestic and
export industries. Services take about half of
all FDI. From 2016–2020, FDI in real estate and Human Health and Social
Work Activities A$4.7bn, 0.5% Mining and Quarrying
financial services – the two largest recipients in A$360.4bn, 35.1%
Administrative and Support Service
the services sector – rose by 12% and 13% per year Activities, A$8.4bn, 0.8%
respectively. Their growth rates were over twice Accommodation and Food Service,
A$8.9bn, 0.9%
the average growth rate (5%) of all industries.
Professional, Scientific
FDI in the professional, scientific and technical and Technical A$11.8bn, 1.1%
sector grew rapidly, at 22% per annum since 2016. Construction A$19.4bn, 1.9%
Utilities and Related Industries
Australia’s export-focused mining sector is the A$22.7bn, 2.2%
biggest primary-industry beneficiary, accounting Transportation and Storage A$25.9bn, 2.5%
for 35% of total FDI, or A$360 billion. Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
Information and Communication A$32.1bn, 3.1% A$3.7bn, 0.4%
Wholesale and Retail Trade

and Related Industries A$61.5bn, 6.0%
Real Estate A$120.0bn, 11.7%
Financial and Insurance A$112.4bn, 11.0%
Note: np = not available for publication but included in totals where applicable.
Others includes unallocated (A$88.9bn); manufacturing (np); public
administration, activities of households and of extraterritorial organisations
(np); education (np); arts, entertainment and recreation (np); and other
services (np).
Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021, International Investment
Position, 2020, Australia: Supplementary Statistics, Table 15; Austrade

Services trade restrictiveness index by sector, Australia vs OECD average in 20212
An open trading
The lower the score, the more open to trade
economy for services
OECD economies Australia
Australia is an open market for trade in 0.16

Distribution (9) 0.13
services. According to the OECD’s Services
0.36
Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI), Australia Legal (2)
0.15
scored 0.19 across 22 sectors in 2021. This
0.23
was lower than the OECD average (0.23). 1 The Engineering (6)
0.15
index ranked Australia as the second most 0.21
Road freight transport (6)
open economy for legal services, and fifth 0.17
most open for air transport. Trade in services is 0.25

Rail freight transport (7)
0.17
also growing strongly. Two-way trade reached
0.24
around A$205 billion in 2019, sharply up from Architecture (9)
0.17
about A$60 billion 20 years ago. This represents 0.19
an annual growth rate of 6.3% over the past two Logistics storage and warehouse (15)
0.18
decades. 0.19
Insurance (20)
0.18
0.20
Commercial banking (19)
0.18
0.28
Accounting (12) 0.19
0.24
Maritime transport (12)
0.20
0.40
Air transport (5)
Notes: 1. Unweighted STRI average of 38 OECD countries. 2. The number in 0.32
brackets indicates the Australia’s global ranking across 38 OECD countries.
Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics ,2022, International Trade in Goods
and Services; Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development,
More open to trade
2022, Services Trade Restrictiveness Index, accessed February 2022;
Austrade

A broad network of Australia’s free trade agreements
trade agreements China 2015 Korea 2014
Australia benefits from 16 free trade agreements

(FTAs), including with the US, China, Japan and Japan 2015
Singapore. We are a member of the Regional United States 2005
Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which came
Hong Kong SAR 2020
into force on 1 January 2022. These FTAs cover
approximately three-quarters of all Australian
Singapore 2003
trade. Today’s network covers multiple export Indonesia 2020 Peru 2020
sectors, from agriculture and seafood to minerals
Thailand 2005
and energy. These agreements deeply integrate
Chile 2009
Australia into global markets. On 2 April 2022,
Malaysia 2013 New Zealand 1983
Australia and India signed the interim Australia-India
Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement. When
Has a bilateral free trade agreement with Australia Participates in an existing multilateral free trade agreement
it enters into force, tariffs will be eliminated on (with date of entry into force)1 with Australia 1
more than 85% of Australian goods exports to India.
d
lan
s
o re
ia
ine
sia
Notes: 1. Australia’s FTA negotiating agenda currently includes: an Australia-
ar
bia
AUSTRALIA’S MULTILATERAL
sia
m
Ze a
bod
ada
ilan
anm
o
gap
one
lipp
European Union Free Trade Agreement, Australia-Gulf Cooperation Council
tna
nei
om
FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS
an
ea
l ay
xic
na
le
s
u
Cam
N ew
Can
Th a
Free Trade Agreement, an Australia-India Comprehensive Economic
Lao
B ru
Ko r
Jap
Pe r
V ie
Chi
Chi
Co l
Ph i
Ind
Sin
Me
Ma
My
Cooperation Agreement, a Pacific Alliance Free Trade Agreement and Trade
in Services Agreement. Information on the status of FTA negotiations can be ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free
found here: https://www.dfat.gov.au/trade/agreements/trade-agreements. Trade Area (2010-11)
2. The Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations Plus (PACER-Plus) Comprehensive and Progressive
entered into force in December 2020. Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, Kiribati, Agreement for Trans-Pacific
Tonga, Solomon Islands, Niue and Cook Islands are parties to the Agreement. Partnership (2018-19)
3. The Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (Australia-UK FTA) Regional Comprehensive
was signed on 17 December 2021 but as of 2 March 2022 is not yet in force. Economic Partnership
Sources: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2022, Australia’s free (2022)
trade agreements; Austrade

05 Strong foundations
Lifestyle cities that are global drawcards 52

The fifth most valuable pension system in the world 53
Good governance, strong institutions and the rule of law 54
Transparent regulation, open markets and efficient businesses 55

05 Strong foundations
A free, prosperous society with good governance
Australia’s economic prosperity is built on One other factor draws in workers from
strong foundations: good governance, open around the world – our lifestyle. Australia’s
markets and the rule of law. state capitals are renowned as some of
the world’s most liveable cities. But they
The World Bank reports that our regulatory
are also affordable. On global cost-of-living
systems and governance indicators
indices, Sydney, Melbourne and Perth rank
compare well with other developed
far below Hong Kong, Tokyo, Shanghai,
economies – ahead of Germany, Japan,
Singapore, New York, London, Los Angeles
the UK and the US. Policy institutes
and San Francisco. We attract global talent
also give Australia high marks for our
looking for fresh opportunities. And many
business environment. This includes labour
of them choose to stay.
regulation, equal opportunity legislation
and access to credit.

Lifestyle cities that are Cost of living: City rankings in Asia and rest of world
Cost of Living Index global rankings, March 2021
global drawcards
Australian cities have become more Other global rankings
Seoul 11
internationally competitive for expatriates. Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 1
Tokyo 4
All of Australia’s state capitals have a low cost Osaka 23 Zurich, Switzerland 5
of living compared to most major cities in the New York, US 14

Beijing 9 Shanghai 6 London, UK 18
Asia–Oceania region, according to Mercer’s
New Delhi 117
Taipei 22 Los Angeles, US 20
2021 Cost of Living Index. This makes Australia Guangzhou 17 San Francisco, US 25
a cost-competitive destination for international Mumbai 78 Hong Kong SAR 2
Yangon 104 Paris, France 33
companies that want to relocate employees Bangkok 46 Manila 78 Milan, Italy 36
and their families. Australian cities are also Ho Chi Minh City 143 Dubai, United Arab Emirates 42
attractive to young workers who want to Hanoi 139 Frankfurt, Germany 54
broaden their horizons. Kuala Lumpur 152 Madrid, Spain 67
Singapore 7
Vancouver, Canada 93
Toronto, Canada 98
Jakarta 104
Brisbane 81
Perth 63
Sydney 31
Canberra 75
Auckland 70
Notes: 1. The Mercer Cost of Living Index compares the cost of living across Wellington 94
Adelaide 88
more than 400 cities around the world.
Sources: Mercer, 2021, Cost of Living Index; Austrade Melbourne 59

The fifth most valuable Global pension fund assets, 2020
Percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) ratio1
pension system in
the world Top 5 pension fund US$ trillion Percentage share % 20-year CAGR 8:
markets 2020 of world total 2020 2000 to 2020
US 32.6 62.0 6.0%
Australia’s compulsory superannuation system
Japan 3.6 6.9 2.0%
has helped create the world’s fifth largest pension UK 3.6 6.8 5.4%
market, worth A$3 trillion (US$2 trillion) in 2020. 220
Canada 3.1 5.9 6.5%
Australian pension funds have also experienced 200 Australia 2.3 4.4 11.3%
one of the highest growth rates of pension fund Other economies 7.4 14.0 na 9
Pension assets as a percentage of GDP

180
assets in the world. Assets rose to 175% of GDP Total 52.5 100.0 na 9
in 2020 – up from 70% in 2000 – representing an 160
annual growth rate of 11.3% in US dollar terms.

140
Rapid growth reflects the vitality of Australia’s
pension system. It is a major driver of the country’s 120
fast-expanding managed funds industry. 100
Average of 22 markets = 80% of world GDP1

80
60
Notes: 1. The assets/GDP ratio for individual markets is calculated in local currency 40
terms, and the total assets/GDP ratio is calculated in US$. Note that the ratio of
total pension assets to GDP declined from 2016 with the addition of China. 20
China’s pension assets represent about 1.5% of total GDP. 2. Only includes
autonomous pension funds. It does not consider insurance companies assets.
3. Includes Individual Retirement Accounts. 4. Does not include the unfunded 0
Italy
Spain
Netherlands
Canada
Australia
Switzerland2
US3
UK
Finland
Chile
Malaysia
South Africa
Japan4
Korea
Hong Kong SAR
Ireland
Mexico
Germany5
Brazil6
India
France
China7
benefit obligation of corporate pension plans (account receivables). 5. Only
includes pension assets for company pension schemes. 6. Only includes pension
assets from closed entities. 7. Only includes Enterprise Annuity assets.
8. CAGR = compound annual growth rate. 9. na = not available for publication.
Sources: Willis Towers Watson, 2021, Thinking Ahead Institute and secondary
sources, Global Pension Funds Assets Study; Austrade

Good governance, Worldwide governance indicators, 20211
strong institutions Economy

Voice and
accountability
Political stability and absence
of violence/terrorism
Government
effectiveness
Regulatory
quality
Rule of
law
Control of
corruption
and the rule of law New Zealand

Norway
99.0
100.0
97.6
94.3
92.8
98.6
99.5
95.7
99.0
99.5
98.6
97.6
Switzerland 98.6 93.4 99.5 93.8 97.6 97.1
Finland 99.5 82.1 99.0 99.0 100.0 99.5
Australia is founded on strong institutions.
Luxembourg 96.6 93.9 97.1 98.6 95.7 96.6
Our regulatory environment, rule of law and Denmark 97.6 81.6 98.1 97.6 98.1 100.0
lack of corruption are all highly rated in World Sweden 97.1 85.4 95.7 95.2 96.6 98.1
Bank rankings. In Australia, fair and effective Canada 96.1 90.1 94.2 94.2 92.8 91.8
Netherlands 98.1 74.1 97.6 96.6 94.7 96.2
governance is seen as the foundation for
Australia 93.2 73.1 93.8 98.1 92.3 93.8
economic growth and a free society. Good
Austria 95.7 74.5 94.7 90.9 97.1 90.9
governance generates confidence among major Ireland 95.2 83.0 90.9 91.8 90.4 91.3
investors. It also makes Australia a secure base Singapore 38.2 97.2 100.0 100.0 98.6 99.0
for multinationals that want to expand or set up Germany 94.2 68.9 88.9 93.3 91.3 95.2
Japan 79.7 87.3 93.3 89.4 90.9 90.4
new operations in the Asia-Pacific region.
UK 89.4 61.3 89.4 92.3 89.9 94.2
Taiwan 84.1 72.2 92.3 89.9 87.0 85.1
Hong Kong SAR 48.3 50.0 95.2 97.1 91.8 93.3
Korea 72.0 62.7 89.9 81.3 84.6 76.0
US 72.9 46.2 87.0 87.5 88.5 82.7
Spain 80.7 58.0 77.9 73.6 78.4 76.4
Italy 82.1 59.9 67.3 68.3 60.6 69.2
Malaysia 40.1 50.9 82.2 74.0 73.1 62.5
Notes: 1. The Worldwide Governance Indicators project reports aggregate India 53.1 17.0 66.8 47.6 54.3 46.6
and individual governance indicators for over 200 countries and territories
over the period 1996–2020, for six dimensions of governance in the table. Indonesia 52.2 28.3 65.4 55.3 41.8 38.9
These aggregate indicators combine the views of a large number of enterprise, China 4.8 37.7 72.6 50.0 52.9 52.9
citizen and expert survey respondents in industrial and developing countries.
Thailand 26.1 24.5 63.5 58.7 57.7 38.5
They are based on over 30 individual data sources. Economy scores are
reported as percentile ranks, with higher values indicating better governance Brazil 56.5 32.1 36.5 46.2 48.1 43.8
ratings. Vietnam 12.1 44.8 61.5 46.6 48.6 42.3
Sources: The World Bank, 2021, The Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2021 Philippines 41.1 18.9 56.3 53.4 31.7 34.1
Update; Austrade

Transparent regulation, Business efficiency and environment, 2021
open markets and

efficient businesses
Australia US UK China India Japan Korea Singapore
Australia’s pro-business environment attracts The Heritage Foundation, 2021 Index of Economic Freedom 6 in:
investment and encourages new businesses. Financial freedom1 1 3 3 160 107 38 38 3
According to the Institute for Management Judicial effectiveness 2 23 14 25 58 16 41 1
Development, Australia ranks highly in terms of Monetary freedom 2
2 47 49 152 135 11 16 8
labour regulations, equal opportunity legislation
Trade freedom 3
3 49 13 89 99 49 56 1
and access to credit. Australia has been a leader
Business freedom4 7 20 1 28 37 9 5 2
in economic freedom since the inception of the
Labour freedom 5 8 3 35 63 167 14 112 1
Index in 1995. Our economy has been in the
Property rights 9 22 25 58 65 5 39 4
highest (free) category for the past 15 years.
Government integrity 10 21 13 75 64 16 28 5
Globally, we rank first for financial freedom,
Non-performing loans % of gross total loans 10 14 8 26 106 15 3 6
second for judicial effectiveness, and third for
IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2021 Ranking in: 7
trade freedom.
State ownership of enterprises is not a threat to business activities 3 13 9 42 27 17 55 24
Notes: 1. Financial freedom is an indicator of banking efficiency as well as a Labour regulations do not hinder business activities 5 13 9 25 38 40 45 6
measure of independence from government control and interference in the
Unemployment legislation provides an incentive to look for work 5 25 8 20 35 32 15 1
financial sector. 2. Monetary freedom score is based on two sub-factors:
The weighted average rate of inflation for the most recent three years and Bureaucracy does not hinder business activity 7 17 15 24 25 23 58 3
a qualitative judgement about the extent of government manipulation of
prices through direct controls or subsidies. 3. Trade freedom is a measure of Equal opportunity legislation encourages economic development 8 22 17 19 26 20 41 6
the extent of tariff and nontariff barriers that affect imports and exports of
goods and services. 4. Business freedom measures the extent to which the Credit is easily available for business 9 1 10 38 37 21 41 16
regulatory and infrastructure environments constrain the efficient operation
Environmental laws & compliance hinder business competitiveness 10 25 13 19 53 11 41 6
of businesses. 5. Labour freedom is based on various aspects of the legal and
regulatory framework of a country’s labour market, including regulations
concerning minimum wages and laws inhibiting layoffs.
Sources: 6. The Heritage Foundation, 2021, Index of Economic freedom;
7. Institute for Management Development (IMD), 2021, World Competitiveness
Yearbook 2021; Austrade

About Austrade
The Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) is Australia’s leading trade
and investment agency.
We are experts in connecting Australian businesses to the world and the world to Australian businesses.
Austrade is the national point-of-contact for investors. We partner with state and territory governments
to provide the information and contacts you need to establish or expand a business in Australia.
We help companies around the world to identify and take up investment opportunities in Australia as well
as to source Australian goods and services for their global supply chains.
To discover how we can help you and your business, visit:

austrade.gov.au
ABN: 11 764 698 227

18-19-235. Publication date: March 2022
ISSN 2205-9415 (Print)
ISSN 2205-9423 (Online)
Disclaimer
This report has been prepared by the Commonwealth of Australia represented by the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade). The report is a general
overview and is not intended to provide exhaustive coverage of the topic. The information is made available on the understanding that the Commonwealth of Australia is
not providing professional advice.
While care has been taken to ensure the information in this report is accurate, the Commonwealth does not accept any liability for any loss arising from reliance on the
information, or from any error or omission, in the report.
Any person relying on this information does so at their own risk. The Commonwealth recommends the person exercise their own skill and care, including obtaining
professional advice, in relation to their use of the information for their purposes.
The Commonwealth does not endorse any company or activity referred to in the report, and does not accept responsibility for any losses suffered in connection with any
company or its activities.
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Why Australia

Benchmark Report 2022

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 2

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 3

The world’s 12th largest economy  6

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 4

A resilient economy that outperforms in global rankings

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 5

of the world’s population, but accounts for 1.7% 5. UK 3.3%

of the global economy.

ASEAN 5.3% (includes 16. Indonesia 1.3%)

12. Australia 1.7%

Notes: 1. Rest of the world’s 196 economies: US$20,926 billion in 2023 or

Sources: International Monetary Fund, 2022, World Economic Outlook April

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 6

a forecast boom in business investment. 0.2 0.1

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 7

10.5 10.2 9.7 9.4

Hong Kong SAR

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 8

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 9

Australian Government’s net debt would be 43% Europe 29 38 8

forecast for advanced economies and the 102% Latin America 44 53 9

average forecast for G7 economies.

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 10

and tourism services exports in the Asia region. 90

$ trillion (current prices, PPP)

Percentage of world’s GDP

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 11

Retail trade 4.5%

Education and training 5.1%

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 12

followed by professional, scientific and technical Mining 4.1

services (4.8%), and healthcare and social Retail trade 3.5

assistance (4.5%). Wholesale trade 3.4

Administrative and support services 3.2

Arts and recreation services 2.9

Rental, hiring and real estate services 2.9

Public administration and safety 2.8

Transport, postal and warehousing 2.6

Ownership of dwellings 2 2.4

Education and training 2.2

Electricity, gas, water and waste services 1.2 Goods: 2.4%

Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021, Australian National Accounts:

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 13

A leader in new technologies  16

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 14

Strong global demand for Australia’s resources, energy and agriculture

Mining and resources powered Australia to a Our digital entrepreneurship is broad-based.

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 15

Sources: 1. KPMG, 2020, KPMG Fintech Landscape 2020. 2. FinTech Australia,

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 16

Australia’s world ranking for resources and energy in 2020

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 17

Asia is the big buyer. Following a moderate 208

growth of 3.2% in 2019–20, exports of 200

2021–22. This is an impressive result amid global

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 18

for a record 25% of total electricity generation Bioenergy 27 0.5% 1.9%

in 2020. Australian companies have dramatically Solar 7 2.5% 49.0%

increased production of renewable energy since Wind energy 12 1.3% 15.0%

terms of energy production. Currently, Australia 70 Total 19 0.8% 10.7%

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 2

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 3

The world’s 12th largest economy 6

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 4

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 5

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 6

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 7

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 8

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 9

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 10

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 11

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 12

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 13

A leader in new technologies 16

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 14

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 15

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 16

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 17

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 18

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 19

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 20

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 21

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 22

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 23

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 24

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 25

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 26

Australia’s roll call of innovation 29

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Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 28

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2021 29

Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 30

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Why Australia Benchmark Report 2022 34