- Published:
- Sunday 28 July 2019
Victoria has again been named the top economic performer in the nation, relegating NSW to second place.
Victoria has shared top spot with its northern neighbour for the past two CommSec State of the States reports, but the latest has declared Victoria the outright winner.
Victoria claimed top billing on four of eight key indicators, including jobs, economic growth, retail trade and construction work.
It also exceeded the national-average on seven of the eight indicators, beating ACT and Tasmania (five) and NSW, Queensland and South Australia (three).
Driven by the Andrews Labor Government’s unprecedented infrastructure build, the latest data showed Victoria’s economic growth in the March quarter was 26.6 per cent above its decade-average, above NSW (25.1 per cent) and Queensland (20.6 per cent).
Victoria continues to outperform the nation, with construction work in the state 30.1 per cent higher than the decade-average output.
This comes as the Labor Government continues with its massive infrastructure pipeline, delivering projects like the Metro Tunnel, level crossing removals and the North East Link.
The Labor Government has almost tripled infrastructure investment to an average of $13.4 billion annually over the four years to 2022-23 compared to the long-run average.
The CommSec report notes Victoria’s retail spending was up 16.6 per cent above the 10-year average, while Victoria also had the strongest job market.
Unemployment is at 4.7 per cent – 16.5 per cent below the decade average – while employment was 14.1 per cent above the 10-year average.
More than 474,000 jobs have been created in Victoria since November 2014.
Quotes attributable to Acting Treasurer Robin Scott
“This latest data confirms what we already knew – Victoria is the nation’s economic pacesetter.”
“Sound economic management and projects like the Metro Tunnel, level crossing removals and the North East Link are delivering rewards across key performance indicators, like jobs growth, retail trade or construction activity.”
“We’ll keep on punching above our weight to create jobs and lay the foundations for future growth and prosperity.”