On a purchasing power parity basis, Australia’s per capita GDP ranks above those of Japan and all major European nations. Among countries with populations greater than 20 million, only the United States and Canada have higher per capita GDPs than Australia.

Wide-ranging reforms, particularly to promote competition, have been instrumental in Australia’s robust productivity growth, most notably in the second half of the 1990s. More recently, the mining boom and its impact on labour utilisation have given further impetus to Australia’s strong performance.