1367.2 - State and Regional Indicators, Victoria, Sep 2003  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 05/11/2003   
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  • More water, higher house prices and increased retail spending: Victorian snapshot (Media Release)

MEDIA RELEASE

November 5, 2003
Embargoed: 11:30 AM (AEST)
114/2003
More water, higher house prices and increased retail spending: Victorian snapshot

During the September 2003 quarter, Victorian water storages experienced dramatic increases from 28.8% to 46.7% of capacity, according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. This increase was a result of a rise in rural Victorian water storages (up from 26.2% to 45.5% of capacity).

During the same period, Melbourne's water storages increased by 9.7%, but was down 2.6% from the levels recorded at the end of September 2002.

For the 2002-03 financial year, the House Price Index (HPI) for established homes in Melbourne increased by 11.7%, compared to a 17.9% increase nationally.

In trend terms, the number of Victorian dwelling units approved (3,884 approvals) in August 2003 decreased 0.5% from the previous month, compared to an increase of 1.4% in national dwelling approvals.

The total value of Victorian building approvals was more than $1.3 billion in August 2003, up 2.7% from July and 3.7% higher than the previous year.

Victorian retail turnover was estimated to be more than $3.5 billion for August 2003 in trend terms. Despite being below the national growth levels, it represented an increase of 0.5% since July 2003, and a 5.8% increase from August 2002.

Further information is in State and Regional Indicators, Victoria, September Quarter 2003 (cat. no. 1367.2). Also includes information on labour force, prices, finance and natural resources specific to Victoria.

Media Note: An article on measuring workplace growth is featured in the publication. Victorian WorkCover Authority data was used to construct estimates of regional workplace numbers (at 30 June 2000, 2001 and 2002) for the purpose of measuring workplace growth. This article summarises the progress of this project and includes a summary of the main findings.