Key publications

Global Trade and Investment Megatrends report

Austrade and CSIRO have collaborated on this report in order to help secure Australia’s future and accelerate new trade and investment by identifying global megatrends emerging in the post-COVID world.

The report is a strategic foresight study exploring changes in the global trade and investment landscape likely to occur over the coming months and years.

The report presents a set of strategic actions for Australian governments and industries to capitalise on significant shifts in the global trade and investment landscape mid/post COVID-19.

Download the report

Watch the Global trade and investment megatrends: the new normal webinar that presents the findings and hear from a panel of industry experts who discuss the report.

Businesses go further faster with Austrade

Austrade's ‘Tailored Services’ lead to more exporters and more export sales

Austrade partnered with Swinburne University of Technology to undertake a research to measure the business performance of those who received an Austrade ‘tailored service’ from 2012–13 to 2015–16.

The research used the most comprehensive firm-level database in Australia: the Business Longitudinal Analytical Data Environment (BLADE), which is managed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Key results

When comparing businesses receiving tailored services against very similar businesses*, the study found:

  • Participating business grew their export sales 26 per cent more than those that opted for general Austrade advice, and much faster than those who didn’t use their services at all.
  • This equates to a total annual increase in exports of more than $20 billon for those firms.
  • Business receiving tailored services increased their employment by around 3% more than those who received general service.

Download the report

*Businesses that used Austrade’s tailored services (>2,500) were compared with those that received general services (>7,300) and non-participating businesses (>1 million).

Australia's International Business Survey (AIBS)

Austrade and the Export Council of Australia are joint publishers of the AIBS Report with support from third party researchers. Launched in 2014, it is one of the most comprehensive surveys of Australian companies in international business. The research aims to build a rich database on the profiles of Australian businesses internationally, their objectives and the challenges they face. The report analyses exporter trends and identifies priority areas for government support.

Read AIBS 2021 on the Export Council of Australia’s website.

Previous surveys

AIBS 2019

AIBS 2018

AIBS 2017

AIBS 2016

AIBS 2015

AIBS 2014

Australia's investment footprint in the US

Mapping Australia’s foreign direct investment in the US

Australia’s investment footprint in the US report (6.291 MB, PDF) sheds light on the significant impact Australian investors make in the US major market. Since the Australia–United States Free Trade Agreement came into force in 2005, two-way investment stock between our two nations has grown by 128 per cent, to $1.45 trillion at the end of 2015. Total US investment in Australia has increased by almost 40% in the past three years.

The Benchmark Report

The Austrade Benchmark Report presents Australia’s attractiveness as a business and investment destination. Using key economic, financial and demographic data, the report assists potential foreign investors to evaluate Australia's economic credentials against similar economies and to understand the investment opportunities Australia presents. The report examines five key reasons for investing in Australia – Growth, Innovation, Talent, Location and Business – and compares Australia’s credentials with other countries.

Reports and presentations

As well as the AIBS and Benchmark Report, the team at Economics at Austrade also produce a range of other reports and publications. These include occasional research pieces as part of the trade and investment note series, presentations, speeches and articles. A selection of this work is available for download.