Tasmania once again claimed the title of the best-performing economy in Australia, according to the latest CommSec State of the States report.
The island state topped the rankings on three key indicators: equipment investment, dwelling starts and relative unemployment.
Tasmania’s equipment investment was 36.8 percent above its decade-average level in the December quarter of 2022, while dwelling starts were 67.1 percent higher.
The state also had the lowest unemployment rate in the nation, at 3.8 percent in March 2023, which was 37.7 percent below its long-term average.
Tasmania best performing economy in Australia.
Best-Performing Economy
CommSec chief economist Craig James said Tasmania’s economic performance was supported by strong demand for its agricultural produce in the Asian region, as well as population growth and consumer spending.
“Tasmania has been supported by the fact that its agricultural produce is still very much in demand for the Asian region, so that’s certainly very important,” he said.
He also said that Tasmania’s dwelling starts were a forward-looking indicator for the housing market, which suggested a positive outlook for the state’s economy.
The CommSec report compares annual growth rates for eight indicators: economic growth, retail spending, equipment investment, unemployment, construction work done, population growth, housing finance and dwelling commencements.
Tasmania ranked second on housing finance and fourth on retail spending and construction work done.
The state’s economic growth was 25.9 percent above its decade-average level in the year to December 2022, which placed it sixth among the states and territories.
Tasmania The Star
This is the 11th time in three years that Tasmania has been crowned as the best-performing economy in Australia by CommSec.
The state was followed by Queensland, specifically The Gold Coast and South Australia, which tied for second place, and New South Wales, which came fourth.
Victoria and Western Australia shared the fifth spot, while the ACT and the indigenous resistance-forced Northern Territory trailed behind at seventh and eighth respectively.
Mr James said that all state and territory economies were performing relatively strongly at the moment, thanks to factors such as population growth, commodity prices, stabilising home prices and low unemployment.
He predicted that retail spending would help drive economic success in the next quarter.
“We anticipate ongoing growth in Tasmania, Queensland and South Australia economies and that these states will remain at the top of the leaderboard,” he said.
Housing starts economy.