Australian Bureau of Statistics

NT’s Indigenous people more likely to be victims of crime than non-Indigenous people

Victor P Taffa

Indigenous people were more likely than non-Indigenous people to be victims of assault and homicide but less likely to be victims of robbery in the NT, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Indigenous people comprised just under one-third (30%) of the NT’s population but were the victims of over half (59%) of all assaults, half (50%) of all sexual assaults and nearly two-thirds (65%) of all homicide and related offences in 2008.

In contrast, 7% of NT’s robbery victims were Indigenous.

Other highlights from this publication include:

• Property offences fell in Palmerston (down 15%), Darwin (down 8%) and Tennant Creek (down 2%) but rose in Katherine (up 13%), Nhulunbuy (up 10%) and Alice Springs (up 7%) over the year to 30 September 2009.

• More than one-third (41%) of the NT’s Vocational Education and Training clients were Indigenous in 2008. Bathurst-Melville had the highest proportion of Indigenous clients (95%), followed by Daly (91%), while Litchfield Shire and Palmerston-East Arm had the lowest at 9% and 16% respectively.

• Unemployment was highest in Bathurst-Melville at 12.1%, followed by Daly with 11.4%, while Darwin City and Palmerston-East Arm had the lowest (at 1.8% and 1.9%) for the March 2009 quarter.

Australian Bureau of Statistics

Australian economy continues to grow: ABS

Victor P Taffa

Latest ABS figures show that GDP, in seasonally adjusted volume terms, grew 0.9% in the December quarter 2009, after growing 0.3% in the September quarter.

Growth in the expenditure measure of GDP was driven by a 3.5% increase in private investment, a 10.2% increase in public investment and a 0.7% increase in household expenditure. Offsetting these increases was a fall in net exports. The fall in net exports was due to imports (up 7.7%) growing faster than exports (up 1.7%).

The industries that provided the main contribution to growth in the production measure of GDP in the December quarter were manufacturing with a 5.1% increase in seasonally adjusted volume terms and wholesale trade with a 3.6% increase in seasonally adjusted volume terms.

Less dwelling units approved this month

Australian Bureau of Statistics

Victor P Taffa

ABS Building Approvals show that the number of dwelling units approved fell 7.0% in January 2010 following a rise last month.

The number of dwellings approved fell in Victoria (-15.9%), Queensland (-7.4%) and Tasmania (-27.0%).

There was a fall in the number of approvals for private sector dwellings other than houses (-29.1%) this month following strong increases in November and December 2009.

The number of approvals for private sector houses rose 0.3%.

Victoria (+4.9%), Queensland (+0.7%), South Australia (+4.6%) and Western Australian (+4.2%) recorded more private sector house approvals this month according to the ABS.

The value of total building approved fell 24.6% in January with the value of both residential (-6.2%) and non-residential building approvals (-41.9%) falling.

Department Stores up 7.2%

New South Wales up 0.4%

Australian Bureau of Statistics

Victor P Taffa

The latest ABS retail trade figures show that sales in January rose 1.2%, seasonally adjusted, compared with a fall of 0.9% the previous month.

Sales rose, in seasonally adjusted terms, across five industry groups:

• Department Stores (7.2%),

• Clothing, Footwear & Other Personal Accessory Retailing (2.9%),

• Other Retailing (1.4%),

• Food Retailing (1.3%),

• Household Goods Retailing (0.6%).

• Sales fell in Cafes, Restaurants & Takeaway Food Services (-3.1%).

Growth in sales for January:

• South Australia (3.7%),

• Western Australia (2.6%),

• Victoria (1.5%),

• Australian Capital Territory (0.8%),

• Queensland (0.7%),

• Northern Territory (0.6%),

•  New South Wales (0.4%).

• Tasmania was unchanged in January.

• Trend turnover for January 2010 rose 0.4%.

Exports down by $266 Million

Imports up by $1,572 Million

Increase in current account deficit

Australian Bureau of Statistics

Victor P Taffa

Latest ABS figures show that in seasonally adjusted, current price terms, the current account deficit rose $2,728 M (19%) to $17,459 M in the December Quarter 2009. Exports of goods and services decreased $266 M and imports of goods and services increased by $1,572 M.

In seasonally adjusted chain volume terms, the goods and services deficit increased $3,790 M resulting in a deficit of $7,750 M. This is expected to detract 1.3 percentage points from growth in the December Quarter 2009 volume measure of Gross Domestic Product.

Australia’s net International Investment Position (IIP) rose $12.4 B to a net liability position of $768.6 B in the December Quarter 2009. Australia’s net foreign debt liability increased $14.2 B and Australia’s net foreign equity liability decreased $1.8 B.