Australia’s total merchandise imports were the highest on record in September 2015 at $23.85bn in seasonally adjusted terms, and $24.13bn in original terms.
In seasonally adjusted terms, Australia’s total merchandise imports rose $332, or 1%, from August to September 2015, according to the most recent data available from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
In original terms, the value of imports increased by $2.27bn, or 10%, on the revised August 2015 import values.
Year-on-year, September’s imports rose near 7%, from $22.58bn in 2014. This means Australia’s total value of imports rose around $129m per month from last September.
China was Australia’s biggest import partner in terms of value, with goods from the country worth a record $5.8bn for the month of September, up 13% or $702m from August, and up almost 20% year-on-year.
Goods from the United States were worth $2.86bn, up 22% from the previous month and 34% year-on-year. This was another record, making the US the second most significant import-trade partner in terms of value.
Imports from Japan were also at an all-time high and were worth $2.01bn in September, up $270m or 15% compared with August. Year-on-year, imports from Japan were up by $508m or 33%.
New South Wales imported the highest value of goods for the month, at $9.53bn, up 11% from August 2015 and again a record high.
Victoria imported $6.57bn worth of goods; Queensland $3.2bn; Western Australia $3.1bn; South Australia $673m; Northern Territory $424m; and Tasmania $77m.
Source: Lloyds List Australia
