The Gold Coast economy has grown to just under $50 billion, cementing the South-East Queensland destination as Australia’s largest regional economy.
Mayor Tom Tate said recent analysis put the region’s economic value at $49.4 billion across a diverse group of industries.
Mayor Tate said a State of the City Report highlighted the Gold Coast’s top five fastest growing sectors with construction and healthcare and social assistance leading the way, contributing $5 billion and $4.5 billion to the economy, respectively.
He said manufacturing ($3.1b), professional, scientific and technical services ($3b) and retail trade ($2.9b) rounded out the top five.
“These key employment sectors have helped drive unprecedented growth which has been supported by targeted investment and strategic investment programs to diversify the economy.
“As the largest economy of any Australian non-capital city, and the first non-capital city expected to reach a population of 1 million by 2040, the Gold Coast is leading the way with unique and varied pathways for our residents and visitors.”
Mayor Tate said the City-owned entity Invest Gold Coast had been tasked with driving further growth looking for potential opportunities for investment and business opportunities across priority sectors including:
- Health and wellbeing.
- Tourism, sport and major events.
- Building future industries.
- Screen and game production.
- The knowledge economy.
- Education and future skills.
“These sectors already inject a combined $20.5B into the local economy, which is expected to grow significantly as Invest Gold Coast seeks to expand the value of these priority sectors, supported by further investment from the City.”
