Main facts about Australia’s traditional industries

Economy of Australia

Australia has a prosperous, Western-style market economy.

The Australian economy is dominated by its services sector (68% of GDP), yet it is the agricultural and mining sectors (8% of GDP combined) that account for 65% of its exports. Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, particularly grains and wool, and minerals, including various metals, coal, and natural gas.

Australia’s small business sector is vital to the economy, accounting for 58 per cent of employment growth over the past six years and generating about 30 per cent of Australia’s economic production. There are more than 1.2 million small businesses in Australia employing almost 3.3 million people. Over the past decade, the number of small businesses has grown by an average 3.5 per cent every year.

Main facts about Australia’s traditional industries

1. Australia is one of the world’s largest exporters of beef. The value of Australia’s beef and veal (телятина) exports totalled $3.8 billion in 2003–04.

2. Australia is the world’s third-largest exporter of dairy products (молочные продукты). In 2003–04 Australia’s exports of dairy products were valued at $2.2 billion.

3. Australia is the world’s largest wool producer and exporter. In 2003–04 Australia’s shorn wool production was 475 000 tonnes and wool exports were valued at nearly $2.8 billion.

4. The major grains and oilseeds (масличные культуры) produced in Australia include wheat, barley, canola, oats and sorghum. Australia is the world’s second-largest wheat exporter and exported 15.2 million tonnes of wheat in 2003–04.

5. Australia’s key cotton export markets include China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Thailand. Australia’s raw cotton exports in 2003–04 were valued at just under $1 billion.

6. Sugar is one of Australia’s major exported crops with exports of around 4 million tonnes in 2003–04, worth around $1 billion.

7. In 2003–04 the gross value of horticulture production (садоводство) was around $6 billion. Major horticultural products include fruits and nuts, vegetables, table grapes, dried vine fruits and nursery products (рассада).

8. Australian fisheries (рыбный промысел) operate in one of the world’s cleanest environments. Seafood production in 2003–04 was around 267 000 tonnes, valued at about $2.1 billion.

9. In 2000–01 the value of turnover of Australia’s forest products was about $15 billion. Australia’s native forest area is around 163 million hectares and around 13 per cent of this is classified as conservation reserve.

10. The Australian food industry had an annual turnover of over $65 billion in 2002–03 and accounted for 46 per cent of total retailing turnover in that year.
Mining

Australia has become one of the world's major mining countries. It ranks first in the production of bauxite (боксит, алюминиевая руда), diamonds, and lead (свинец), and is a leading producer of coal, copper, gold, iron ore, manganese (марганец), nickel, silver, tin (олово), titanium (титан), tungsten (вольфрам), zinc, and zircon (циркон).