NSW Has The Best-Performing Economy In Australia

It’s a good day for NSW and its businesses, with a new CommSec report saying NSW has the best economy of any state or territory in the country.

CommSec’s quarterly State of the States report has been released, with the results showing how Australia’s states and territories are performing by analysing several indicators:

Economic growth
Retail spending
Business investment
Unemployment
Construction work
Population growth
Housing finance
Dwelling commencements

Taking these factors into consideration, the report deemed New South Wales as having the best performing economy, retaining the top rankings for equipment investment, retail trade, and dwelling commencements.

CommSec State of the States report#NSW retains top spot as the best performing economy https://t.co/6srePIpgaM #stateofthestates #auspol pic.twitter.com/eY5jBS7ep5

— CommSec (@CommSec) April 23, 2017

It’s a repeat result for the state of NSW, which has been at the top of the rankings for several quarters now – and naturally, NSW’s government is rather pleased with the results.

“Looking around the country there is simply no better place to live, to work, to run a business, or raise a family,” Treasurer Dominic Perrottet told News Corp.

However, the Queensland government in particular was not so happy with CommSec’s report, with the Sunshine State ranking fifth for the quarter.

It’s a result that State Treasurer Curtis Pitt said missed the mark.

“There is little doubt that a full view of the Queensland economy shows the state was growing and performing strongly following the mining boom and outperforming many interstate counterparts,” Mr Pitt said in a statement.

“Other indicators and other surveys and analysis paint an entirely different picture to the flawed ‘league table’ approach taken by CommSec.”

Shadow Treasurer Scott Emerson was more accepting of the report’s findings, pointing out, “Queensland continues to lead the nation in job losses – we are second last on unemployment, which is listed as the state’s major weakness.”

ACT is the secondary star of the report

While NSW hasn’t moved this time around, the new rankings do bring one significant change, with the ACT taking Victoria’s number 2 spot to become the country’s second-strongest economy.

CommSec State of the States report#ACT lifts to 2nd place, ahead of Vic. Get the insights https://t.co/6srePIpgaM #statofthesttes #ausbiz pic.twitter.com/HzJu81bNl9

— CommSec (@CommSec) April 23, 2017

The ACT was also the only state to avoid under-performing the national average on any of the eight economic measures.

Speaking to Fairfax, CommSec Chief Economist Craig James said the ACT had come out on top in the housing finance indicator, as well as coming second and third in several others.

“Economic momentum is on its side with firmer population growth, low unemployment, and solid residential and engineering work,” he said.

Mr James also said that the report demonstrates that Australia currently has “a multi-speed national economy”.

“New South Wales is solidly on top, with little to separate the ACT and Victoria,” he said.

“Then there is a gap to Tasmania, Queensland, Northern Territory and South Australia, then another gap to Western Australia.”

Here are the full rankings from this quarter’s State of the States report:

NSW – Leading in business investment, retail trade, and dwelling starts, and near the top on the other indicators.
ACT – Leading in housing finance, along with coming second in two other measures and third on three others.
Victoria – Dropped from second place, but leading in population growth and only just behind the ACT.
Tasmania – Second in unemployment, and just above Queensland overall.
Queensland – Second-weakest in unemployment and construction work, but not doing too badly off the back of exports, and expecting a boost from post-flood construction work.
Northern Territory – Leading the country with the best jobs market, lowest unemployment, and most construction work, but bottom of the ladder in population growth, retail spending, home lending, dwelling commencements, and business investment.
South Australia – Employment is growing at a near-record speed for the last 6 years, which is in turn increasing retail spending.
Western Australia – Unemployment not as much of a problem as it has been in past quarters, but the end of the mining boom is still hitting the state hard.

CommSec State of the States report OUT NOW
NSW retains top spot. See how the other states & territories performed https://t.co/6srePIpgaM pic.twitter.com/chDUxIvJgi

— CommSec (@CommSec) April 23, 2017

James Hurwood

Former Finance Journalist

James Hurwood is a former Finance Journalist at Canstar with experience unpacking and explaining personal finance. He started at Canstar in 2013 as a Cadet Journalist while completing a Bachelor of Journalism majoring in Media & Communications at QUT.