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Do not fill this in! ==Economy== {{Main|Economy of Australia}} {{Further|Economic history of Australia|Tourism in Australia}} [[File:Sydney central business district skyline, August 2021.jpg|thumb|The [[Sydney central business district|central business district]] of [[Sydney]] is the [[financial centre]] of Australia.]] Australia's [[World Bank high-income economy|high-income]] [[mixed economy|mixed-market economy]] is rich in [[Mining in Australia|natural resources]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Russell|first=Clyde|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-column-russell-commodities-australia-idUKKBN2BM0WC |title=Column: Resource-rich Australia shows vagaries of any commodity supercycle|date=30 March 2021|work=[[Reuters]] |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref> It is the world's [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|fourteenth-largest]] by nominal terms, and the [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|18th-largest]] by [[purchasing power parity|PPP]]. {{As of|2021}}, it has the [[List of countries by wealth per adult|second-highest amount]] of wealth per adult, after [[Luxembourg]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Wealth Databook 2021|url=https://www.credit-suisse.com/media/assets/corporate/docs/about-us/research/publications/global-wealth-databook-2021.pdf |access-date=14 August 2022|publisher=[[Credit Suisse]]}}</ref> and has the [[List of countries by financial assets per capita|thirteenth-highest]] financial assets per capita.<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Carrera|first1=Jordi Bosco|last2=Grimm|first2=Michaela|last3=Halzhausen|first3=Arne|last4=Pelaya|first4=Patricia|url=https://www.allianz.com/content/dam/onemarketing/azcom/Allianz_com/economic-research/publications/specials/en/2021/october/2021_10_07_Global-Wealth-Report.pdf |title=ALLIANZ GLOBAL WEALTH REPORT 2021|date=7 October 2021|publisher=[[Allianz]] |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref> Australia has a labour force of some 13.5 million, with an unemployment rate of 3.5% as of June 2022.<ref name="ABSLabourForce">{{Cite web|website=Australian Bureau of Statistics|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia/latest-release |title=Labour Force, Australia|date=14 July 2022 |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref> According to the [[Australian Council of Social Service]], the [[Poverty in Australia|poverty rate of Australia]] exceeds 13.6% of the population, encompassing 3.2 million. It also estimated that there were 774,000 (17.7%) children under the age of 15 living in relative poverty.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://povertyandinequality.acoss.org.au/poverty|title=Poverty – Poverty and Inequality}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.acoss.org.au/media_release/report-shows-three-million-people-in-poverty-in-australia-and-why-we-must-act-to-support-each-other|title=Report shows three million people in poverty in Australia and why we must act to support each other - ACOSS}}</ref> The [[Australian dollar]] is the national currency, which is also used by three island states in the Pacific: [[Kiribati]], [[Nauru]], and [[Tuvalu]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/30205/ado2013-small-island-economies.pdf |title=Small island economies|year=2013|publisher=[[Asian Development Bank]] |access-date=14 August 2022|quote=All three countries use the Australian dollar as legal tender.}}</ref> [[Australian government debt]], about $963 billion in June 2022, exceeds 45.1% of the country's total GDP, and is the world's [[List of countries by government debt|eighth-highest]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Dossor|first=Rob|url=https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/BudgetReview202122/CommonwealthDebt |title=Commonwealth debt|publisher=[[Parliament of Australia]] |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref> Australia had the [[List of countries by household debt|second-highest level]] of [[household debt]] in the world in 2020, after Switzerland.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/HH_LS@GDD/AUS/CHE |title=Household debt, loans and debt securities|publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]] |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref> [[Australian property market|Its house prices]] are among the highest in the world, especially in the large urban areas.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Neubauer|first=Ian|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2022/4/6/australians-home-ownership-dream-turns-soar-as-prices-soar |title='Ridiculous prices': Australians' home ownership dreams turn sour|work=[[Al Jazeera English|Al Jazeera]]|date=6 April 2022 |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref> The large service sector accounts for about 71.2% of total GDP, followed by the industrial sector (25.3%), while the [[Agriculture in Australia|agriculture sector]] is by far the smallest, making up only 3.6% of total GDP.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/australia |title=Australia. CIA – The World Factbook |work=[[The World Factbook]]|publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]] |access-date=22 January 2011}}</ref> Australia is the world's [[List of countries by exports|21st-largest exporter]] and [[List of countries by imports|24th-largest importer]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.trademap.org/Country_SelProductCountry.aspx?nvpm=1%7c036%7c%7c%7c%7cTOTAL%7c%7c%7c2%7c1%7c1%7c2%7c1%7c%7c2%7c1%7c1%7c1 |title=List of importing markets for the product exported by Austral1ia in 2021|publisher=[[International Trade Centre]] |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.trademap.org/Country_SelProductCountry.aspx?nvpm=1%7c036%7c%7c%7c%7cTOTAL%7c%7c%7c2%7c1%7c1%7c1%7c1%7c%7c2%7c1%7c1%7c1 |title=List of supplying markets for the product imported by Australia in 2021|publisher=[[International Trade Centre]] |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref> China is Australia's [[List of the largest trading partners of Australia|largest trading partner]] by a wide margin, accounting for roughly 40% of the country's exports and 17.6% of its imports.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/29/trade-war-with-china-australias-economy-after-covid-19-pandemic.html |title=Australia's growth may 'never return' to its pre-virus path after trade trouble with China, says economist|last=Tan|first=Weizhen|date=29 December 2020|publisher=[[CNBC]] |access-date=10 February 2021}}</ref> Other major export markets include Japan, the United States, and South Korea.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.dfat.gov.au/publications/trade-and-investment/trade-and-investment-glance-2020 |title=Trade and investment at a glance 2020|publisher=[[Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade]] |access-date=14 August 2022}}</ref> Australia has high levels of competitiveness and economic freedom, and was ranked fifth in the [[Human Development Index]] in 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |last=United Nations Development Programme |date=September 2022 |title=United Nations Development Programme, The 2021/2022 Human Development Report: Uncertain times, unsettled lives, Shaping our future in a transforming world (p 272) |url=https://hdr.undp.org/content/human-development-report-2021-22 |access-date=13 August 2023 |website=United Nations}}</ref> {{As of|2022}}, it is ranked twelfth in the [[Index of Economic Freedom]] and nineteenth in the [[Global Competitiveness Report]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Country Rankings|url=https://www.heritage.org/index/ranking|publisher=[[The Heritage Foundation]]|access-date=14 August 2022|archive-date=30 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200430170123/https://www.heritage.org/index/ranking|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_TheGlobalCompetitivenessReport2022.pdf |title=The Global Competitiveness Report|publisher=[[World Economic Forum]]|last=Schwab|first=Klaus|author-link=Klaus Schwab|year=2022}}</ref> It attracted 9.5 million international tourists in 2019,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://statistics.jnto.go.jp/en/graph/#graph--inbound--travelers--transition |title=Trends in the Visitor Arrivals to Japan by Year|publisher=JNTO |access-date=11 December 2020}}</ref> and was [[World Tourism rankings|ranked thirteenth]] among the countries of [[Asia-Pacific]] in 2019 for inbound tourism.<ref name="WTOB">{{Cite journal|date=August–September 2020|publisher=UNWTO |title=Statistical Annex|journal=UNWTO World Tourism Barometer|volume=18|issue=5|page=18|doi=10.18111/wtobarometereng.2020.18.1.5|doi-access=free}}</ref> The 2021 ''[[Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report]]'' ranked Australia seventh-highest in the world out of 117 countries.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Travel & Tourism Development Index 2021 |date=May 2022|publisher=[[World Economic Forum]]|url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Travel_Tourism_Development_2021.pdf |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref> Its international tourism receipts in 2019 amounted to $45.7 billion.<ref name="WTOB"/> ===Energy=== {{Main|Energy policy of Australia|Renewable energy in Australia}} In 2021–22, Australia's generation of electricity was sourced from [[Bituminous coal|black coal]] (37.2%), [[brown coal]] (12%), [[natural gas]] (18.8%), [[Hydroelectricity|hydro]] (6.5%), [[Wind power|wind]] (11.1%), [[Solar power|solar]] (13.3%), [[Bioenergy|bio-energy]] (1.2%) and others (1.7%).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Australian electricity generation - fuel mix |url=https://www.energy.gov.au/energy-data/australian-energy-statistics/data-charts/australian-electricity-generation-fuel-mix |access-date=2024-02-05 |website=energy.gov.au}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Australian electricity generation renewable sources |url=https://www.energy.gov.au/energy-data/australian-energy-statistics/data-charts/australian-electricity-generation-renewable-sources |access-date=2024-02-05 |website=energy.gov.au}}</ref> Total consumption of energy in this period was sourced from coal (28.4%), oil (37.3%), gas (27.4%) and renewables (7%).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Australian energy mix by state and territory 2021-22 |url=https://www.energy.gov.au/energy-data/australian-energy-statistics/data-charts/australian-energy-mix-state-and-territory-2021-22 |access-date=2024-02-05 |website=energy.gov.au}}</ref> From 2012 to 2022, the energy sourced from renewables has increased 5.7%, whilst energy sourced from coal has decreased 2.6%. The use of gas also increased by 1.5% and the use of oil stayed relatively stable with a reduction of only 0.2%.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Energy consumption |url=https://www.energy.gov.au/energy-data/australian-energy-statistics/energy-consumption |access-date=2024-02-05 |website=energy.gov.au}}</ref> In 2020, Australia produced 27.7% of its electricity from renewable sources, exceeding the [[Renewable energy target|target]] set by the Commonwealth government in 2009 of 20% renewable energy by 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Renewable Energy Target Scheme Design |url=http://www.climatechange.gov.au/renewabletarget/pubs/RET-scheme-design.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515035607/http://www.climatechange.gov.au/renewabletarget/pubs/RET-scheme-design.pdf |archive-date=15 May 2009 |access-date=15 May 2009}}</ref><ref name="energy">{{Cite web |last1=Clean Energy Council Australia |title=Clean Energy Australia Report 2021 |url=https://assets.cleanenergycouncil.org.au/documents/resources/reports/clean-energy-australia/clean-energy-australia-report-2021.pdf |access-date=3 June 2021 |website=Clean Energy Australia}}</ref> A new target of 82% percent renewable energy by 2030 was set in 2022<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-08-05 |title=Australia will fall well short of 82 per cent renewable energy by 2030, analysts predict, as problems mount |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-06/australia-likely-to-fall-short-of-82pc-renewable-energy-target/102689392 |access-date=2024-02-05 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}</ref> and a target for [[net zero emissions]] by 2050 was set in 2021.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Evans |first=Jake |date=2021-10-26 |title=What is the government's plan to get Australia to net zero? |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-26/how-will-australia-reach-net-zero-by-2050-and-2030-targets/100565342 |access-date=2024-02-11 |work=[[ABC News (Australia)]] |language=en-AU}}</ref> ===Science and technology=== In 2019, Australia spent $35.6 billion on [[research and development]], allocating about 1.79% of GDP.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 March 2021 |title=Research and Experimental Development, Businesses, Australia, 2019–20 financial year {{!}} Australian Bureau of Statistics |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/industry/technology-and-innovation/research-and-experimental-development-businesses-australia/latest-release |access-date=20 May 2022 |website=www.abs.gov.au |language=en}}</ref> A recent study by [[Accenture]] for the Tech Council shows that the Australian tech sector combined contributes $167 billion a year to the economy and employs 861,000 people.<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 April 2022 |title=Australia wants a place in ranks of global tech nations |url=https://www.afr.com/technology/australia-wants-a-place-in-ranks-of-global-tech-nations-20220328-p5a8kh |access-date=20 May 2022 |website=Australian Financial Review |language=en}}</ref> In addition, recent [[startup ecosystem]]s in Sydney and Melbourne are already valued at $34 billion combined.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 September 2021 |title=Sydney's startup ecosystem is worth $24 billion, Melbourne's $10.5bn |url=https://www.startupdaily.net/2021/09/sydneys-startup-ecosystem-is-worth-24-billion-melbournes-10-5bn |access-date=20 May 2022 |website=Startup Daily |language=en-US}}</ref> Australia ranked 24th in the [[Global Innovation Index]] 2023.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=WIPO |title=Global Innovation Index 2023, 15th Edition |url=https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2023/index.html |access-date=2023-10-23 |website=www.wipo.int |doi=10.34667/tind.46596 |language=en}}</ref> With only 0.3% of the world's population, Australia contributed 4.1% of the world's published research in 2020, making it one of the top 10 research contributors in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Research Output {{!}} Australian Innovation System Monitor |url=https://publications.industry.gov.au/publications/australianinnovationsystemmonitor/science-and-research/research-output/index.html |access-date=24 July 2022 |website=publications.industry.gov.au}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Berthold |first=Emma |date=17 May 2021 |title=Science in Australia |url=https://www.science.org.au/curious/policy-features/science-australia |access-date=24 July 2022 |website=Curious |language=en}}</ref> [[CSIRO]], Australia's national science agency, contributes 10% of all research in the country, while the rest is carried out by universities.<ref name=":1"/> Its most notable contributions include the invention of [[atomic absorption spectroscopy]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hannaford |first=Peter |title=Alan Walsh 1916–1998 |url=http://www.science.org.au/academy/memoirs/walsh2.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070224214248/http://www.science.org.au/academy/memoirs/walsh2.htm |archive-date=24 February 2007 |access-date=5 December 2022 |website=AAS Biographical Memoirs |publisher=[[Australian Academy of Science]]}}</ref> the essential components of [[Wi-Fi]] technology,<ref>{{Cite web |title=National Museum of Australia – Wi-fi |url=https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/wi-fi |access-date=6 December 2022 |website=www.nma.gov.au |publisher= |language=en}}</ref> and the development of the first commercially successful [[polymer banknote]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=CSIRO |date=25 November 2014 |title=Proceeds of crime: how polymer banknotes were invented |url=https://blog.csiro.au/proceeds-of-crime-how-polymer-banknotes-were-invented |access-date=6 December 2022 |website=CSIROscope |language=en-AU}}</ref> Australia is a key player in supporting [[space exploration]]. Facilities such as the [[Square Kilometre Array]] and [[Australia Telescope Compact Array]] radio telescopes, telescopes such as the [[Siding Spring Observatory]], and ground stations such as the [[Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex]] are of great assistance in deep space exploration missions, primarily by [[NASA]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Dave |title=Australia's part in 50 years of space exploration with NASA |url=http://theconversation.com/australias-part-in-50-years-of-space-exploration-with-nasa-24530 |access-date=13 December 2022 |website=The Conversation |date=19 March 2014 |language=en}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). 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