Industries in Australia

Find profiles, forecasts, statistics and other information on Australian industries & markets

Business Organisations

AI Group

The Australian Industry Group (AI Group) represents member companies in manufacturing, construction, automotive, telecommunications, IT, transport, labour hire and other industries. AI Group offers members a range of support and advice as well as running many training workshops and seminars.

VCCI

The Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) is an independent, non-government body. Formerly known as  Victorian  Employes'Chamber of Commerce and Industry  [VECCI],  VCCI was started by the business community to represent interests of business at a State level as well as nationally. It has a diverse membership from all levels and sectors of industry including: business services, hospitality, manufacturing, retail, tourism and emerging sectors. VCCI produces a number of useful publications as well as running training seminars, workshops etc.  Many of its past webinars are available on its website.  Its quarterly Survey of Business Trends and Prospects,  is designed to monitor business performance and expectations with respect to current and expected trends in national and state economic conditions.  State Library's collections are from March 1995 to March 2015, with some gaps in holdings of 1995 - 1999. Collection is held at the offsite storage spaces so will need to be ordered in by librarians.

Government bodies

Government bodies often provide reports, reviews and statistics on various industries - check the Commonwealth government directory and/or the Business & Industry pages of Victoria Online. Examples:  

  • The Australian Productivity Commission   is the Australian Government’s principal advisory body on micro-economic reform. It is a prolific publisher of its research and reports, reviewing whole industries, assessing assistance, considering industry deregulation. It will often develop a discussion paper, commission or acquire statistics and other data, hold hearings and produce reports. Most publications available at no charge on the website.
  • Tourism Research Australia is a branch within Australian Trade and Investment Commission. It provides  accurate, timely and strategically relevant statistics and analyses to the tourism industry, government and the community, particularly to assist the industry with its marketing and business decisions.  A range of tourism surveys and forecasts can be found on its website.
  • Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES)   ABARE  regularly publishes short and medium term forecasts for a range of commodities regarding climate & natural resources impact  across a broad range of issues including agriculture, minerals, energy, fisheries and forestry. Most of the research is available free in electronic format.  In 2010 ABARE merged with the Bureau of Rural Sciences to form ABARES.
  • The Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics (BITRE) provides economic analysis, research and statistics on infrastructure, transport and regional issues to inform both Australian Government policy development and wider community understanding. BITRE holds unique aviation, maritime and, increasingly, land transport data collections, which are made available on this website.

Associations

Associations represent the interests of participants.

For example, the housing industry will include many such organisations, such as builders associations, non-profit housing groups, consumer groups, employer and employee groups.

The best way to identify organisations relevant to a particular industry is with the Directory of Australian Associations, which is available in print at the State Library or through an online subscription.