Perth’s Economy

Perth’s residents have traditionally enjoyed the highest standard of living of any of Australia’s big cities.

Until recently, the reason for this has been that, for most occupations, wages were only a little less than could be found in cities such as Sydney and Melbourne while house prices in Perth were considerably lower than the other cities.

From 2005 into 2008, this situation changed as house prices in Perth advanced strongly before peaking and, as is happening in many other western economies, now falling.

Nevertheless, relative to Sydney and Melbourne, houses in Perth are still much more expensive than they were just a few years ago.

All of the usual jobs associated with a big city are available in Perth, though jobs may be slightly harder to get in Perth than in Sydney or Melbourne.

Western Australia has huge deposits of metal ores and coal. Booming Asian economies, particularly China, have sourced many of their raw materials from Western Australia, resulting in high economic growth for the state and its capital, Perth.

Many large mining and mineral concerns have their headquarters in Perth. Mining itself is carried on outside Perth but the city is home to many support industries employing engineers and scientists.

There is a large oil refinery at Kwinana, 25 km south of Perth, with associated engineering and chemicals jobs.

Agriculture and tourism are also large players in the Perth region’s economy.