Australian defence industry grows by 12.4%

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Released
16/04/2025
Source
Australian Defence Industry Account, experimental estimates, 2023-24 financial year

The Australian defence industry contributed $11.9 billion in gross value added (GVA) to the Australian economy in 2023-24 according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). This accounts for 0.47 per cent of total GVA. 

Luisa Ryan, ABS head of satellite accounts, said: ‘Australian defence industry GVA grew by 12.4 per cent, or $1.3 billion, in the 2023-24 financial year.’ 

Employment in the Australian defence industry grew by 9.1 per cent in the 2023-24 financial year, reaching a total of 69,400 people. 

‘South Australia drove the national defence industry growth. The state’s defence industry grew by $425 million, and 1,300 more defence industry employees were added,’ Ms Ryan said. 

New South Wales and Victoria continued to have the largest defence industries of the states and territories, with the defence industry contributing $3.5 billion in New South Wales and $2.5 billion in Victoria. 

Professional, scientific and technical services ($5.4 billion) and Manufacturing ($2.0 billion) continued to make the largest contributions to the Australian defence industry.

Media notes

  • The contribution to the defence industry is represented by direct defence Gross Value Added (GVA). GVA is the standard indicator to assess the contribution of an industry or sub-sector to the broader economy. It represents the additional value added through the creation of a product or the provision of a service.
  • The Australian defence industry account was first released in 2022, and it is an experimental account.
  • When reporting ABS data you must attribute the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or the ABS) as the source.
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