Australia: Country and Foreign Investment

Business Environment

Telecommunications is an important aspect of the Australian economy. The sector is currently dominated by Telstra, which was formerly controlled by the Postmaster-General but is now fully privatised. Other telecommunications providers are in the market and, at over 24m in 2009, there are now more mobile phones in Australia than people.

Road and rail transportation in Australia is a highly significant part of the infrastructure of the Australian economy, since the distances are large and the country has a low population density. Distances travelled by car are the highest in the world outside of North America.

There are seven designated international airports – Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. Ports serving international commercial traffic are also concentrated around the main cities, but there are additional specialised ports serving mineral resources, such as iron ore.

Australia’s commercial property market has, in 2008-09, had to withstand its worst environment since the early 1990s. Banking and financial services are extremely well developed in Australia, and the government is attempting to make the country a financial hub for the region.