The latest edition of CommSec’s State of the States is out today, and it has WA ranked number one, a long way ahead of all other States, including Queensland, based on comparisons of eight economic indicators including economic growth, retail trade and new housing construction. WA Today has the best coverage here:
I’ve previously posted on how CommSec’s methodology gives a misleading impression of Queensland’s economic performance, given that it is comparing current activity levels with Queensland’s outstanding economic performance last decade:
Ask a silly question, get a silly answer
While I agree with CommSec that WA is leading Australia in economic performance at the moment, I disagree that Queensland’s current economic performance places us in the same grouping as NSW and SA and behind Victoria and the ACT (see WA economy outperforms the rest). CommSec needs to look more closely at the most recent figures for State Final Demand (which is booming) and building approvals (Queensland was the only State to record growth in building approvals in February). Luckily OESR produces these useful briefs:
Queensland Economy Watch 