NSW BUSINESS CONDITIONS AND PROSPECTS POSITIVE

Treasurer Gladys Berejiklian has welcomed the Deloitte Access Economics Business Outlook, which highlighted the strengths of the NSW economy and confirmed that NSW is the number one State in which to do business.

The report, released today, noted NSW’s outperformance on indicators such as housing construction, jobs, population growth and tourism with low interest rates and exchange rates particularly playing to the State’s strengths.

“The DAE Business Outlook states that there is a lot to like about conditions and prospects in NSW, particularly because the NSW Government’s asset recycling program is boosting investment in new infrastructure projects,” Ms Berejiklian said.

Acknowledging the State’s large transport infrastructure pipeline, the report described NSW as the only state to make a “serious attempt” to benefit from the Federal Government’s Asset Recycling Initiative.

“This is more evidence that this Government has its priorities right,” Ms Berejiklian said. “Over the next few years we are going to be seeing more construction across the State as we deliver on our infrastructure commitments. At the same time we will deliver the quality services that people rely on day in and day out.”

The report predicted that the construction sector in NSW will continue to outperform the other states and that it will bolster both the State and national economies into the future.

“It is clear that NSW remains the best State in which to live, work and do business,” Ms Berejiklian said.

The DAE Business Outlook also noted that NSW has great jobs growth, with a “widening gap between this State’s unemployment rate and Australia’s”, in addition to a continuing lift in job vacancies, and healthy levels of small business confidence.

DAE forecasts NSW State Final Demand (SFD) growth of 2.9 per cent in 2015-16 and 2.3 per cent in 2016-17, well above DAE’s corresponding forecasts for national Domestic Final Demand (DFD) growth of 0.9 per cent in both years.