Australia is a stable, democratic society with a skilled workforce
and a strong, competitive economy. With a population of over 20 million,
Australia is the only nation to govern an entire continent and is
the sixth-largest country in the world in land area. Australia’s
multicultural society includes Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
peoples and migrants from some 200 countries.
Australian exports are a mix of traditional commodities, services
and advanced manufacturing. The economy is open and innovative, with
a commitment from the Australian Government to maintain economic growth
in a competitive environment. Over the past decade, strong growth
has been accompanied by low inflation and interest rates, and solid
productivity.
The Australian Government is firmly committed to supporting Australian
innovation and excellence through an ongoing action plan called ‘Backing
Australia’s Ability—Building our Future through Science
and Innovation’.
In a global economy, language skills are a great advantage for the
national workforce. Although English is the official language in Australia,
more than 4.1 million Australians speak a second language. As a result,
Australia offers the familiarity of a Western business culture with
a workforce capable of operating in both Asian and Western business
environments. In fact, Australia has a greater range of Asian language
skills than any other country in Asia or the Pacific. More than 840
companies have established their regional headquarters in Australia.
The language skills and other capabilities that attract foreign companies
are, in part, a result of Australia’s diverse multicultural
society. In almost 60 years of planned post-war migration, Australia
has welcomed over 6 million migrants, including more than 600 000
refugees. Over this time, the population has increased from about
7 million to 20 million.
Tourism
Tourism is one of Australia’s most important industries. It
accounts for 5.7 per cent of total employment, contributes $73 billion
to consumption per annum and is worth more than 11 per cent of total
exports.
More than 90 per cent of tourism-related businesses employ about
20 staff, including substantial numbers of young people and people
from non–English speaking backgrounds. With 48 cents in every
tourism dollar spent outside of the capital cities, tourism is also
a key economic sector for regional Australia.
There were 5.2 million visitor arrivals to Australia during 2004,
an increase of 10 per cent on the previous year’s figure.
Ten facts about Australia’s traditional
industries:
1. Australia is one of the world’s largest exporters of beef.
The value of Australia’s beef and veal exports totaled to
$3.8 billion.
2. Australia is the world’s third-largest exporter of dairy
products. Australia’s exports of dairy products were valued
at $2.2 billion.
3. Australia is the world’s largest wool producer and exporter.
Australia’s shorn wool production was 475 000 tonnes and wool
exports were valued at nearly $2.8 billion.
4. The major grains and oilseeds produced in Australia include
wheat, barley, canola, oats and sorghum. Australia is the world’s
second-largest wheat exporter and exports over 15.2 million tonnes
of wheat every year.
5. Australia’s key cotton export markets include China, Japan,
the Republic of Korea and Thailand. Australia’s raw cotton
exports were valued at just under $1 billion.
6. Sugar is one of Australia’s major exported crops with
exports of around 4 million tonnes, worth around $1 billion.
7. The gross value of horticulture production was around $6 billion.
Major horticultural products include fruits and nuts, vegetables,
table grapes, dried vine fruits and nursery products
8. Australian fisheries operate in one of the world’s cleanest
environments. Seafood production each year is around 267 000 tonnes,
valued at about $2.1 billion.
9. The value of turnover of Australia’s forest products was
about $15 billion. Australia’s native forest area is around
163 million hectares and around 13 per cent of this is classified
as conservation reserve.
10. The Australian food industry had an annual turnover of over
$65 billion and accounted for 46 per cent of total retailing turnover.
Australia and foreign trade
Australia’s export base is strong and diverse. Australian
businesses are internationally competitive and there are many international
business opportunities thanks to low tariffs and minimal barriers
to entry.
The current account deficit (CAD) has traditionally been a benchmark
for foreign investors. Australia has averaged a CAD of around 5.5
per cent of GDP over the past decade. In 2003–04 the CAD reached
5.8 per cent of GDP. With the Australian Government’s budget
in surplus, the current account deficit is now largely the result
of private sector trade and income flows.
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