Australian business turnover fell by 2.2% in August (seasonally adjusted), marking the sharpest monthly decline since April 2023, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
“This fall in turnover was the largest since April 2023 with drops across nine industries this month,” Tom Lay, ABS head of business statistics, said in a media release.
The downturn was broad-based, with significant declines across major industries.
“The electricity, gas, water, and waste services division dropped 14.1% as wholesale electricity and gas prices fell following strong rises in the previous month,” Lay said.
“Other notable industry falls were in manufacturing, down 5.8%, information media and telecommunications, down 3.7%, and mining, down 1.9%.”
The August results highlight continued volatility in the energy sector, as well as broader weakness in production and resources.
However, other indicators suggest momentum in the wider economy remained firm in August. According to NAB’s latest Business Survey, business conditions rose 2 points and now sit around their long-run average level, driven by stronger employment and profitability.
Despite the monthly fall, overall turnover remained 4.5% higher than in August 2024, with gains recorded in 11 of the 13 measured industries.
ABS noted that construction and arts and recreation services both rose 7.3%, followed closely by transport, postal, and warehousing at +7.2%.
The two industries reporting annual declines were electricity, gas, water, and waste services (-1%) and mining (-0.7%).
In trend terms, the 13-industry aggregate rose 0.3% in August, marking the 12th consecutive month of growth.
NAB’s data also pointed to encouraging forward indicators, with forward orders entering positive territory for the first time in two years and capacity utilisation rising to 83.1%, about two percentage points above the long-run average.
ABS also announced that the Monthly Business Turnover Indicator will cease after the final release on Nov. 10, which will cover data for September.
Existing publications will remain available on the ABS website.
For brokers, the latest ABS and NAB data together suggest a mixed but improving business landscape. While turnover eased in August, stronger employment, profitability, and forward orders point to rising confidence and better lending prospects heading into the final quarter of 2025.
With business conditions stabilising and capacity utilisation above average, brokers may find increased appetite among SMEs for funding expansion, equipment, and working capital as cost pressures moderate.
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