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2021
Economic Complexity
Trade -0.41Rank 82 of 131
2021
Economic Complexity
Technology 1.11Rank 13 of 96
2021
Economic Complexity
Research 2.08Rank 4 of 140
2021
Product
Exports | Imports $343B | $251B20 of 226 |  24 of 226
2021
Per Capita Product
Exports | Imports $13.4k | $9.76k33 of 220 |  62 of 220

About

Overview In 2021, Australia was the number 13 economy in the world in terms of GDP (current US$), the number 20 in total exports, the number 24 in total imports, the number 17 economy in terms of GDP per capita (current US$) and the number 82 most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI) .

Exports The top exports of Australia are Iron Ore ($118B), Coal Briquettes ($54.3B), Petroleum Gas ($39.2B), Gold ($17.6B), and Wheat ($7.36B), exporting mostly to China ($138B), Japan ($47B), South Korea ($29.4B), India ($20.5B), and Chinese Taipei ($13.2B).

In 2021, Australia was the world's biggest exporter of Iron Ore ($118B), Coal Briquettes ($54.3B), Raw Nickel ($3.71B), Wool ($2.28B), and Zinc Ore ($2B)

Imports The top imports of Australia are Refined Petroleum ($19.6B), Cars ($18.8B), Delivery Trucks ($8.08B), Broadcasting Equipment ($6.68B), and Computers ($6.61B), importing mostly from China ($70B), United States ($25.7B), Japan ($15.3B), Thailand ($12.1B), and Germany ($11.6B).

In 2021, Australia was the world's biggest importer of Sodium or Potassium Peroxides ($673M) and Other Sea Vessels ($521M)

Location Australia borders Timor-Leste, Indonesia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and New Caledonia by sea.

Latest Trends

September, 2023

About

Overview In September 2023 Australia exported AUD40.8B and imported AUD34B, resulting in a positive trade balance of AUD6.86B. Between September 2022 and September 2023 the exports of Australia have decreased by AUD-8.03B (-16.4%) from AUD48.9B to AUD40.8B, while imports decreased by AUD-146M (-0.43%) from AUD34.1B to AUD34B.

Trade In September 2023, the top exports of Australia were Metalliferous ores and metal scrap (AUD45.4B), Crude fertilizers and crude minerals (AUD38.4B), Coal,coke and briquettes (AUD20.8B), Meat and meat preparations (AUD15.9B), and Vegetables and fruit (AUD14.5B). In September 2023 the top imports of Australia were Electric machinery,n.e.s.and parts (AUD45.9B), General industrial machinery n.e.s. (AUD40.7B), Telecommunications and sound recording equipm (AUD30.5B), Machinery for specialized industries (AUD30.2B), and Road vehicles (AUD26.8B).

Origins In September 2023 the exports of Australia were mainly from Western Australia (AUD21.3B), Queensland (AUD8.82B), New South Wales (AUD6.77B), Victoria (AUD2.82B), and South Australia (AUD1.28B), while imports destinations were mainly New South Wales (AUS13.9B), Victoria (AUS10.3B), Queensland (AUS6.64B), Western Australia (AUS4.21B), and South Australia (AUS1.16B).

Destinations In September 2023, Australia exported mostly to chn (AUD17.1B), jpn (AUD6.47B), kor (AUD3.14B), ind (AUD1.97B), and twn (AUD1.6B), and imported mostly from China (AUD10B), United States (AUD4.06B), South Korea (AUD2.4B), Japan (AUD2.23B), and Thailand (AUD2.14B).

Latest Trade

Flow
Time Scale
Depth
Color
EXPORT GROWTH (September 2022 - September 2023)AUD-8.03B(-16.4%)
IMPORT GROWTH (September 2022 - September 2023)AUD-146M(-0.43%)
MAIN EXPORTER (September 2023)Western AustraliaAUD21.3B
MAIN DESTINATION (September 2023)ChinaAUD17.1B

This section shows exports and imports data at subnational level for Australia. Click any date in the line plot, any subnational region in the geomap, or any product, destination or origin country to explore the exports or imports behavior of Australia over time.

For full datasets download visit Bulk Download page.

Go to Bulk Download

Disclaimer: Australia reports partners and products from different sources so datasets total trade value may vary from each other.

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Historical Data

Yearly Trade

Flow
Color
Depth
Top Export (2021)Iron Ore$118B
Top Destination (2021)China$138B

In 2021, Australia exported a total of $343B, making it the number 20 exporter in the world. During the last five reported years the exports of Australia have changed by $139B from $204B in 2016 to $343B in 2021.

The most recent exports are led by Iron Ore ($118B), Coal Briquettes ($54.3B), Petroleum Gas ($39.2B), Gold ($17.6B), and Wheat ($7.36B). The most common destination for the exports of Australia are China ($138B), Japan ($47B), South Korea ($29.4B), India ($20.5B), and Chinese Taipei ($13.2B).

Explore Visualizations

Exports (2021)
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Destinations (2021)
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Market Growth

Flow
View
Fastest Growing Export Markets (2020 - 2021)
China$35.4B (+ 34.4%)
Japan$15.3B (+ 48.3%)
South Korea$12.3B (+ 71.7%)
Fastest Growing Import Markets (2020 - 2021)
China$12.7B (+ 22.2%)
Singapore$4.38B (+ 70.2%)
South Korea$3.33B (+ 52.2%)

Total Export Growth by Market (2020 - 2021)

Service Trade

Service Trade

Australia Exports Services (2020)$46.1B
Australia Imports Services (2020)$35B

In 2020, Australia exported $46.1B worth of services. The top services exported by Australia in 2020 were Personal travel ($25.3B), Miscellaneous business, professional, and technical services ($7.06B), Transportation ($3.23B), Financial services ($3.21B), and Other personal, cultural, and recreational services ($3.11B).

The top services imported by Australia in 2020 were Miscellaneous business, professional, and technical services ($9.82B), Transportation ($9.11B), Personal travel ($6.05B), Financial services ($2.01B), and Other royalties and license fees ($1.69B).

Service Exports (2020)

Service Imports (2020)

Economic Complexity

Overview

Economic Complexity (Trade)-0.41Rank 82 of 131
Economic Complexity (Technology)1.11Rank 13 of 96
Economic Complexity (Research)2.08Rank 4 of 140

Most Specialized Products by RCA Index

Australia has a high level of specialization in Wool (38.3), Iron Ore (32.9), Sheep Hides (24.9), Other Mineral (24.4), and Coal Briquettes (23.4). Specialization is measured using RCA, an index that takes the ratio between Australia observed and expected exports in each product.

Most Complex Products by PCI

The highest complexity exports of Australia according to the product complexity index (PCI) are Nickel; bars, rods, profiles and wire (1.14), Signalling, safety or traffic control equipment; for railways, tramways, roads, inland waterways,... (1.03), Machines and appliances, instruments or apparatus of chapter 90; parts and accessories... (0.95), Wheat gluten; whether or not dried (0.5), and Mechano-therapy, massage appliances; psychological aptitude testing apparatus; ozone, oxygen, aerosol therapy, artificial... (0.47). PCI measures the knowledge intensity of a product by considering the knowledge intensity of its exporters.

Export Opportunities by Relatedness

The top export opportunities for Australia according to the relatedness index, were Soybeans (0.15), Crude Petroleum (0.14), Chromium Ore (0.14), Mate (0.14), and Lignite (0.13). Relatedness measures the distance between a country's current exports and each product. The barchart show only products that Australia is not specialized in.

Product Space

The product space is a network connecting products that are likely to be co-exported. The product space can be used to predict future exports, since countries are more likely to start exporting products that are related to current exports. Relatedness measures the distance between a product, and all of the products a country currently specializes in.

Relatedness Space

This network shows the products most related to the production structure of Australia. These are products that tend to be co-exported with the products that Australia exports. Higher relatedness values ​​indicate greater knowledge, which predicts a greater probability of exporting that product in the future.

Diversification Frontier

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Depth

The Complexity-Relatedness diagram compares the risk vs strategic value of a country's potential export oppotunities. Relatedness is predictive of the probability that a country increases its exports in a product. Complexity, is associated with higher levels of income, economic growth, less income inequality, and lower greenhouse emissions.

Economic Complexity Ranking

Methodology
Scale

During the last 20 years Australia's⁩ ⁨economy has become relatively less complex, moving from the ⁩⁨33rd to the 82nd⁩ position in the ECI rank.

These economic complexity rankings use 6 digit exports classified according to the HS96 classification. We consider only countries with population of at least 1 million and exports of at least $1 billion, and products with world trade over $500 million. To explore different rankings and vary these parameters visit the custom rankings section.

Explore Rankings

ECI (Trade) Ranking by Country

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