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Queensland continues to demonstrate economic resilience, with the latest December data showing the state significantly outperforming the national average in household spending. Whether looking at current prices or inflation-adjusted chain volumes, the Sunshine State is doing well.
Key Takeaways:
Robust Growth Across the Board
Queensland’s total trend household spending rose by 6.2% year on year, notably higher than the national increase of 5.2%. Even when we strip away the impact of inflation to look at chain volume measures, Queensland saw a 3.4% increase compared to just 2.4% nationally.
Discretionary vs. Non-discretionary Spending
The data highlights the ongoing cost-of-living pressures, as non-discretionary spending grew faster than discretionary spending both in Queensland and across Australia.
Non-discretionary: Up 6.4% in Queensland vs. 5.6% nationally.
Discretionary: Up 6.0% in Queensland vs. 5.0% nationally.
Sector Highlights:
Transport and Recreation
A standout performer for Queensland was the sector, which grew by 4.8% vs 4.2% nationally. This sector accounts for a significant portion of total spending (17.5% in Queensland), driving much of the state’s discretionary lead.
Interestingly, Transport spending volume also grew strongly in Queensland. This may be linked to the state government’s subsidised public transport policy, which has triggered a surge in use of approximately 18% since its 2024 introduction.
The sharp decline in the Alcohol & Tobacco sector (down 12.6% in QLD) is particularly striking. This is likely a result of the surge in illicit tobacco, which will not be captured in this official data, rather than lots of Aussies suddenly kicking bad habits!
We are proud to have CBC Staff Selection as supporters of the Conus/CBC Staff Selection Trend Employment and Jobseeker data series