Private new capital expenditure (capex) rose 0.6 per cent in the September quarter 2023 (seasonally adjusted, chain volume measures) to be 10.7 per cent higher than a year ago, according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Robert Ewing, ABS head of business statistics, said: “The mining industry was the main driver behind the growth in total new capital expenditure, increasing by 5.6 per cent in the quarter. This was offset by a fall in non-mining industries, down 1.3 per cent after large rises in the previous four quarters.”
Capex was up 0.5 per cent for new equipment and machinery and 0.7 per cent for buildings and structures.
| Building – Seasonal ($m) | Building – Trend ($m) | Equipment – Seasonal ($m) | Equipment – Trend ($m) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep-03 | 7,551 | 7,434 | 10,134 | 9,959 |
| Dec-03 | 7,670 | 7,626 | 10,196 | 10,128 |
| Mar-04 | 7,542 | 7,852 | 9,798 | 10,093 |
| Jun-04 | 8,272 | 8,045 | 10,102 | 10,255 |
| Sep-04 | 8,259 | 8,306 | 10,432 | 10,679 |
| Dec-04 | 8,515 | 8,626 | 11,778 | 11,118 |
| Mar-05 | 9,351 | 9,218 | 10,994 | 11,410 |
| Jun-05 | 9,885 | 10,178 | 11,798 | 11,815 |
| Sep-05 | 11,515 | 11,223 | 12,372 | 12,537 |
| Dec-05 | 12,611 | 12,349 | 13,559 | 13,219 |
| Mar-06 | 13,008 | 13,329 | 13,473 | 13,384 |
| Jun-06 | 14,380 | 13,650 | 12,945 | 13,219 |
| Sep-06 | 13,396 | 13,473 | 13,175 | 13,026 |
| Dec-06 | 12,667 | 13,425 | 13,053 | 13,149 |
| Mar-07 | 15,520 | 15,167 | 13,583 | 13,684 |
| Jun-07 | 16,313 | 15,731 | 14,274 | 14,041 |
| Sep-07 | 15,318 | 16,071 | 14,278 | 14,344 |
| Dec-07 | 16,505 | 16,172 | 14,653 | 14,688 |
| Mar-08 | 16,671 | 16,320 | 15,063 | 15,293 |
| Jun-08 | 16,296 | 16,940 | 16,108 | 15,917 |
| Sep-08 | 17,995 | 18,302 | 16,374 | 16,086 |
| Dec-08 | 20,498 | 19,396 | 15,636 | 15,873 |
| Mar-09 | 19,219 | 19,479 | 15,364 | 15,444 |
| Jun-09 | 18,823 | 18,496 | 15,648 | 15,393 |
| Sep-09 | 17,033 | 17,628 | 14,993 | 15,696 |
| Dec-09 | 17,514 | 17,494 | 16,669 | 15,911 |
| Mar-10 | 18,438 | 18,112 | 15,568 | 15,589 |
| Jun-10 | 18,559 | 19,084 | 14,971 | 14,989 |
| Sep-10 | 20,717 | 19,935 | 14,269 | 14,845 |
| Dec-10 | 20,465 | 20,769 | 15,769 | 15,504 |
| Mar-11 | 22,196 | 22,438 | 16,607 | 16,348 |
| Jun-11 | 24,391 | 24,918 | 16,713 | 16,944 |
| Sep-11 | 29,258 | 27,955 | 17,314 | 17,201 |
| Dec-11 | 29,616 | 30,937 | 17,366 | 17,340 |
| Mar-12 | 33,752 | 33,261 | 17,404 | 17,442 |
| Jun-12 | 35,120 | 34,374 | 17,427 | 17,612 |
| Sep-12 | 33,715 | 34,151 | 17,904 | 17,750 |
| Dec-12 | 33,103 | 33,041 | 17,791 | 17,604 |
| Mar-13 | 32,288 | 32,700 | 16,958 | 17,222 |
| Jun-13 | 32,959 | 33,178 | 16,667 | 16,613 |
| Sep-13 | 34,372 | 33,593 | 16,270 | 15,975 |
| Dec-13 | 33,383 | 33,574 | 14,955 | 15,336 |
| Mar-14 | 31,768 | 33,208 | 15,231 | 15,014 |
| Jun-14 | 33,196 | 32,932 | 14,825 | 15,229 |
| Sep-14 | 32,443 | 32,410 | 16,009 | 15,690 |
| Dec-14 | 31,524 | 31,227 | 15,895 | 15,879 |
| Mar-15 | 29,074 | 29,449 | 15,644 | 15,540 |
| Jun-15 | 28,174 | 27,897 | 14,866 | 14,844 |
| Sep-15 | 25,406 | 26,205 | 14,049 | 14,352 |
| Dec-15 | 26,002 | 25,105 | 14,365 | 14,257 |
| Mar-16 | 23,518 | 23,403 | 14,429 | 14,447 |
| Jun-16 | 21,088 | 21,524 | 14,690 | 14,577 |
| Sep-16 | 20,086 | 20,258 | 14,485 | 14,498 |
| Dec-16 | 20,189 | 20,086 | 14,350 | 14,366 |
| Mar-17 | 20,510 | 20,396 | 14,263 | 14,309 |
| Jun-17 | 20,620 | 20,734 | 14,451 | 14,423 |
| Sep-17 | 21,027 | 20,905 | 14,685 | 14,735 |
| Dec-17 | 20,908 | 20,873 | 15,066 | 15,075 |
| Mar-18 | 20,548 | 20,599 | 15,637 | 15,440 |
| Jun-18 | 20,312 | 20,257 | 15,439 | 15,803 |
| Sep-18 | 19,807 | 20,021 | 16,429 | 16,097 |
| Dec-18 | 20,364 | 20,135 | 16,183 | 16,308 |
| Mar-19 | 19,835 | 19,805 | 16,317 | 16,346 |
| Jun-19 | 19,133 | 19,426 | 16,355 | 16,223 |
| Sep-19 | 19,337 | 19,042 | 15,927 | 16,071 |
| Dec-19 | 18,461 | 18,621 | 15,945 | 15,811 |
| Mar-20 | 18,266 | 17,988 | 15,611 | 15,641 |
| Jun-20 | 17,249 | 17,268 | 14,181 | 15,694 |
| Sep-20 | 16,708 | 16,829 | 14,279 | 15,967 |
| Dec-20 | 16,794 | 16,897 | 15,329 | 16,351 |
| Mar-21 | 17,450 | 17,422 | 16,643 | 16,625 |
| Jun-21 | 18,225 | 18,057 | 16,762 | 16,730 |
| Sep-21 | 18,411 | 18,572 | 16,755 | 16,754 |
| Dec-21 | 18,931 | 18,799 | 16,745 | 16,814 |
| Mar-22 | 18,929 | 18,763 | 16,929 | 16,954 |
| Jun-22 | 18,508 | 18,746 | 17,217 | 17,063 |
| Sep-22 | 18,918 | 19,017 | 17,122 | 17,164 |
| Dec-22 | 19,844 | 19,722 | 17,210 | 17,399 |
| Mar-23 | 20,468 | 20,528 | 17,903 | 17,792 |
| Jun-23 | 21,363 | 21,163 | 18,294 | 18,193 |
| Sep-23 | 21,514 | 21,621 | 18,393 | 18,516 |
“The increase in building and structures investments was driven by mining, up 5.4 per cent. This industry raised its spending on iron-ore projects and battery-related mineral developments. It was offset by a fall in non-mining industries, down 2.2 per cent.
“The construction industry was the largest contributor to the rise in equipment and machinery capex. It grew by 15.0 per cent as supply-chain disruptions continued to ease. This allowed businesses to take delivery of new vehicles and heavy machinery,” Mr Ewing said.
Western Australia had the largest rise of the States and Territories, increasing 7.5 per cent in the September quarter. This was offset by a large fall in Queensland, down 10.8 per cent following large rises in the March and June quarters.
| Mar 23 to Jun 23 (% change) | Jun 23 to Sep 23 (% change) | |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | 3.4 | -2.5 |
| Victoria | 5.6 | 0.6 |
| Queensland | 5.7 | -10.8 |
| South Australia | 4.5 | 2.5 |
| Western Australia | 6.9 | 7.5 |
| Tasmania | 12.0 | -1.7 |
| Northern Territory | 11.9 | 2.0 |
| Australian Capital Territory | 9.5 | 7.3 |
New capital expenditure by State has been very mixed over the past 12 months, with Western Australia and Victoria leading the pack with growth of 24 per cent and 20.1 per cent.
“Growth in Western Australia was dominated by the mining industry, while growth in Victoria reflects a continuing recovery from steep declines during the pandemic,” Mr Ewing said.
Figures released today also include updated expectations of planned capex for the financial year. Businesses revised up their expectations by 8.5 per cent (in current prices) since the previous estimate three months ago.
“The strength in planned capital investment shows that businesses expect continued growth in new capital expenditure over the rest of this financial year. The information media and telecommunications industry had a particularly large rise based on planned investment in new data centres,” said Mr Ewing.
