Australia’s 28 years of economic growth

A World Record: Australia’s 28 years of strong economic growth

Australia’s economy has been growing steadily since the 1990s, making it the nation with the longest period of recession-free growth on record for any developed economy.

With an average growth rate of 3.2% per annum since 1991, Australia is enjoying its longest growth phase in 50 years. Even in the face of two financial crises – 2001’s ‘dot-com’ bubble-burst and 2008’s GFC – Australia’s economy experienced year-on-year growth, while all other OECD member-countries had at least two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth.

Australia is known for its open, outward-looking trading economy. In particular, it has been exposed to very strong growth across markets in Asia, especially China. Being an open trading economy forces Australia to focus on areas where it can be internationally competitive. Some sectors of the economy have declined periodically, but other new sectors have come on stream and we have had new opportunities to enter new markets.

According to the IMF, between 2019 and 2023, Australia is expected to see 2.7% average annual real GDP growth – the highest projection among major advanced economies.

Key areas of growth include international education, agribusiness, advanced manufacturing, energy and resources, tourism, creative industries and fintech – all of which Australia will have on show at Expo 2020 Dubai.

For further information on opportunities to invest and do business in Australia, visit Austrade.