Business professionals lead services exports growth

Australia’s total services exports rose eight per cent to $43.9 billion in 2006, the Australian Government Minister for Trade, Warren Truss, announced today.

Mr Truss today launched the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade publication, Trade in Services Australia 2006.

Business services exports recorded unprecedented growth - particularly in FTA countries, the United States and Singapore.

Exports of other business services, which include a wide range of services provided by business professionals, rose 18 per cent to $5.3 billion in 2006. Within this category exports which showed significant increases in 2006 included:

engineering services (up 41 per cent to reach $1 billion for the first time);
business and management consultancy and public relations services (up 67 per cent to $236 million);
agricultural & mining services (up 61 per cent to $286 million);
accounting services (up 59 per cent to $266 million); and
advertising, market research and public polling services (up 28 per cent to $229 million.

Travel services remain Australia’s major services export, accounting for 54 per cent of the total. Two major service activities are now in Australia’s top 10 exports. Personal travel services (excluding education-related) valued at $11.0 billion rose one per cent but is still ranked third after coal and iron ore; and education services, at $10.7 billion (up 12 per cent), ranked fourth.

The United States was the single-largest destination for Australia’s services exports in 2006, with exports up 11 per cent to $5.5 billion. Exports also rose to other major destinations such as China (up 10 per cent to $3.3 billion), New Zealand (up 7 per cent to $3.1 billion), Singapore (up 13 per cent to $2.8 billion) and India (up 23 per cent to $1.5 billion).

Passenger services dropped 1.5 per cent to $4.1 billion, legal services fell seven per cent to $245 million and government services went down one per cent to $863 million.

Trade in Services is published twice a year, on calendar year and financial year bases. In addition to the detailed official statistics on Australia’s trade in services collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the publication presents information on international student enrolments; numbers of short-term visitor arrivals and departures; tourism expenditure; and tourism purpose of journey information.

The main features and analysis from the publication are available on www.dfat.gov.au/publications/stats.html.

From 1 July 2007, statistical publications from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will be free to the public on the DFAT website. Should clients wish to obtain printed copies of these publications, they will be re-directed to an external website, where they can place an order for a hard copy. For further information, contact 02 6261 3114 or email statssection@dfat.gov.au.

Media Inquiries: Minister Truss' office 02 6277 7420 - Departmental Media Liaison 02 6261 1555