Sydney's economic growth rate has slowed.Credit:Alina Gozin'a
Despite Sydney's slowdown,there is a growing disparity between the economic performance of the city and the state’s drought-hit regions.
The economy of regional NSW shrank by 0.3 per cent last financial year with agricultural production down almost 20 per cent compared with 2017-18.
The effects of drought weighed heavily on activity in regional cities,especially Wagga Wagga where output contracted by 2.5 per cent and Orange where output shrank 1.1 per cent.
Growth was also subdued in Newcastle (0.9 per cent) and Wollongong (0.7 per cent) during 2018-19.
The report shows GDP per person in regional NSW in 2018-19 was $604 lower than the previous year at $55,193,but in greater Sydney output per person rose by $504 to $86,521. The difference of $31,328 was the largest ever shown by the survey,which has figures going back to 1990.
The report’s author,economist Terry Rawnsley,said Sydney’s economy had “slowed markedly” since 2015-16 when it grew by 4 per cent. The downturn in the property market between mid-2017 and mid-2019 and weaker activity in the construction sector had contributed.
“There is definitely nervousness among Sydney consumers,” Mr Rawnsley said.