8731.0 - Building Approvals, Australia, Dec 2016 Quality Declaration 
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 02/02/2017   
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MEDIA RELEASE
2 February 2017
Embargoed: 11.30 am (Canberra time)
08/2017
Dwelling approvals fall in December

The number of dwellings approved fell 2.5 per cent in December 2016, in trend terms, and has fallen for seven consecutive months, according to the latest figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today.

In December dwelling approvals decreased in trend terms, in New South Wales (6.3 per cent), Queensland (5.0 per cent), Australian Capital Territory (2.0 per cent), South Australia (1.3 per cent) and Western Australia (0.3 per cent) but increased in Tasmania (3.8 per cent), Victoria (1.5 per cent) and the Northern Territory (1.4 per cent).

Approvals for private sector houses fell 0.4 per cent in December in trend terms. Private sector house approvals fell in Western Australia (1.2 per cent), South Australia (0.7 per cent), New South Wales (0.5 per cent), Victoria (0.2 per cent) and Queensland (0.1 per cent).

In seasonally adjusted terms, dwelling approvals decreased by 1.2 per cent in December, driven by a fall in total house approvals (2.2 per cent). Total dwellings excluding houses rose 0.1 per cent.

The value of total building approved fell 3.5 per cent in December, in trend terms, and has fallen for five months. The value of residential building fell 2.4 per cent while non-residential building fell 5.6 per cent.

Further information is available in Building Approvals, Australia (cat no. 8731.0) on the ABS website at https://www.abs.gov.au.

Media notes:
  • When reporting ABS data, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or ABS) must be attributed as the source.
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