Australia's manufacturing sector grew for the second consecutive month during September, pushing to its highest level since December 2007, a performance gauge produced by an industry group shows.
The manufacturing sector's return to health is yet more evidence Australia's economic downturn has been much shallower than expected and bodes well for unemployment to peak below government forecasts.
Australian retail sales surged in August, setting the stage for a rise in interest rates by the Reserve Bank of
Retail sales rose a higher-than-expected 0.9% to a seasonally adjusted $19.81bn in August, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said.
Economists surveyed ahead of the announcement had on average expected a 0.5% rise in sales for August. A 2.4% lift in department store sales bolstered the result.
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Australian new homes sales rose 11% in August from July, the best outcome in over three and a half years, the Housing Industry Association, an umbrella group for home builders, said.
The sharp rise follows a modest 0.1% increase in July from June. It comes amid a late surge in sales to first-time home buyers as generous government grants are due to be pared back, it said in a statement.
Detached house sales rose by 11.8% on-month, following a 0.3% rise in July. The number of apartments sold rose by 7.5%.
Australian annual wage rises under all enterprise agreements struck in the second quarter of 2009 averaged 3.9%, down from 4.6% in the first quarter, the Department of Employment additionally reported.
In the private sector, annual wage rises under enterprise agreements certified in the second quarter averaged 4.0%, down from 4.6% in the first quarter. For public sector employees, the average annual wage increase under enterprise agreements struck in the three months to June 30 was 3.9%, down from 4.3% in the first quarter.
An index of job vacancies for skilled workers in Australia rose by 1.2% in September from August, the Department of Employment said. The index currently stands at 38.6 but is still 50.4% lower than in September 2008.
The Australian economy continues to shows signs of a solid recovery with a leading index of economic activity showing strong improvement in July.
The Westpac-Melbourne Institute index of economic activity contracted at an annualised rate of 1.8% in July compared with a contraction of 4.6% in June. The index attempts to point to where the economy is likely headed in the next three to nine months.
The total number of houses and apartments that started construction in Australia in the second quarter of 2009 fell 3.7% from the first quarter to a seasonally adjusted 30,411.
Economists according to a poll had forecast growth of 1.0% in the second quarter from the first.The Bureau of Statistics also reported that the number of private-sector houses started in the second quarter rose 3.7% from the previous quarter to 22,347.
The value of commercial finance issued in Australia in July fell 1.0% after seasonal adjustment from June to $25.86bn, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said.
A rise of 6.8% in revolving credit for commercial finance was accompanied by a fall of 4.5% in fixed-lending commitments. Lease finance increased by 30.0% in July after seasonal adjustment to $436m. Personal finance fell 0.8%, comprised of a 2.3% increase in revolving credit and a 3.7% fall in fixed lending, the ABS said in a statement.Inflationary expectations were unchanged in September, with the median expected inflation rate unchanged from a reading of 3.5% in August, according to a survey by the Melbourne Institute.