Most industries see a fall in monthly business turnover

As reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), over the month of October, there was a 0.6 per cent dip in business turnover over the 13 recorded industries. Compared to the same time last year, there was a 0.3 per cent decrease.

The industries driving the slight drop in monthly turnover were:

• Electricity, gas and water waste services (down 10.3 per cent).
• Transport, postal and warehousing (down 3.1 per cent).
• Information media and telecommunications (down 2.8 per cent).
• Mining (down 1.8 per cent).
• Retail trade (down 0.3 per cent).

Electricity, gas and water waste services witnessed the most subdued revenue by a large margin. According to Robert Ewing, ABS head of business statistics, this was driven by an increased focus in renewable energy.

“The fall in the electricity, gas, water and waste services industry was driven by weaker turnover from businesses in the electricity and gas supply subdivisions. Despite this fall, turnover is still higher than this time last year, with turnover up 7.3 per cent compared to October 2023,” Ewing said.

“Turnover for businesses in the electricity supply subdivision fell 9.9 per cent as lower average prices coincided with abundant renewable energy supply.

“We saw other notable industry falls in transport, postal and warehousing, which was down 3.1 per cent, information media and telecommunications, down 2.8 per cent, and mining down 1.8 per cent.”

Despite the decreases, there were five of the 13 industries that saw increased turnover. These were:

• Arts and recreation services (up 2.4 per cent).
• Accommodation and food services (up 2.2 per cent).
• Wholesale trade (up 1.5 per cent).
• Manufacturing (up 1.3 per cent).
• Administrative support services (up 0.1 per cent).

While there were more monthly drops than rises, 10 out of the 13 industries recorded year-on-year increases in revenue, highlighting stabilising spending.

Over the year, industries like arts and recreation services, construction, and electricity, gas, water and waste services saw rises in turnover of 10.3 per cent, 8.1 per cent, and 7.3 per cent, respectively.

[Related: Construction driving business turnover, but investor sentiment remains weak]

Jack Campbell is the editor of Broker Daily. After graduating from the University of Wollongong in 2022, Jack began his journalistic career working on Broker Daily’s sister brand, HR Leader. In August 2023 he was made the news editor and worked alongside some talented journalists writing articles and recording podcasts.

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