(8 April 2013 – Australia) Australian businesses are adapting to the ongoing elevated Australian Dollar environment by importing more and exporting less, according to new research by Australasia’s leading banking research and advisory firm, East & Partners.Easts’ latest Trade Finance program indicates that in the past six months the
trend for enterprises from all business segments is towards imports, with an
average 1.6 percent increase in companies that import-only compared to an almost
one percent fall in companies that export-only or both import and export.
A high Australian Dollar gives importers a distinct advantage, with Easts’
research showing the number of Institutional businesses engaged exclusively in
importing rising almost ten percent from 22.4 percent in February 2010 to 32.1
percent in February 2013.
A similar surge is evident in the corporate market with the percentage of
corporates assuming an import only profile rising 10.0 percent, from 64.4
percent in February 2010 to 74.6 percent in February 2013.
Import / Export Trade Profile
| % of Institutions | ||||||
| SME | Corporate | Institutional | ||||
|
Feb 2010 (N: 794) |
Feb 2013 (N: 769) |
Feb 2010 (N: 687) |
Feb 2013 (N: 691) |
Feb 2010 (N: 371) |
Feb 2013 (N: 361) |
|
|
Importing Only |
78.3 | 85.6 | 64.4 | 74.6 | 22.4 | 32.1 |
|
Exporting Only |
16.4 | 10.1 | 9.9 | 5.8 | 24.0 | 18.0 |
|
Both Importing & Exporting |
5.3 | 4.3 | 25.7 | 19.6 | 53.6 | 49.9 |
|
TOTAL |
100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
Source: East & Partners Trade Finance Markets Program
Conversely the number of enterprises engaged in exporting has continued to
decline by an average of 5.5 percent.
The latest round of East & Partners’ research found businesses engaged
exclusively in exporting has reached a low of 18.0 percent for the Institutional
market, 5.8 percent in the Corporate market and 10.1 percent in the Small to
Medium Enterprise (SME) market. The number of institutions engaged in both
importing and exporting has seen a more subtle decrease.
Lachlan Colquhoun, East & Partners’ Head of Markets Analysis comments: “This
pattern is widely attributed to ongoing restructuring, offshoring of
manufacturing and non-core business operations and comparative advantages
offered by attaining cheaper importer goods instead of relatively more expensive
domestically produced goods. This trend is also evident in the latest Australian
Bureau of Statistics merchandise import figures indicating a rise in net
merchandise imports of 1.5 percent, from A$18,412 million to A$18,956 million.”
“As expected the main destination for materials and mining exports are China and
India, however the high Australian dollar is having a clear effect on
international competitiveness amongst falling commodity prices and increasing
exports from countries with relatively depreciated currencies”
About East & Partners’ Trade Finance Markets Program
Reliable and cost effective Trade Finance solutions are of strategic importance
and are directly attributable to Relationship Positioning within Trade Customer
Demographics, Market Share, Competitive Positioning, Service Factor and Customer
Satisfaction levels between banks. The six-monthly Trade Finance Markets report
forecasts demand for trade related banking services and products among
institutional corporations constituting Australia’s Top 500 corporations by
revenue, corporate businesses constituting annual turnover of A$20 – 530 million
and SME’s turning over A$5 – 20 million.
Note: Business Depositor Segments
› Institutional – A$530 million plus
› Corporate – A$20-530 million
› SME – A$5-20 million
› Micro – A$1-5 million
For more information or for further interview based insights from East &
Partners please contact:
Sian Dowling
Marcomms & Client Services
East & Partners
t: 02 9004 7848
m: 0420 583 553
e: sian.d@eastandpartners.com