Melbourne economic outlook: From economic recovery to economic reinvention
How has Melbourne's economy been performing, what is the outlook for the next 3 years, and what can urban policy do suport long term productivity growth in the metropolis and in its sub regions?
SGS Melbourne quarterly seminar presentation by Associate Director Terry Rawnsley tracked Melbourne's recent performance in a number of key economic indicators and identified the growth performance of different industry sectors. Projecting the three year outlook in employment, unemployment and participation rates, it suggested which industry sectors the growth is likely to come from.
But what do we need to do to drive the city's growth in the long term? To support the larger and older population of Melbourne's future, it will be vital to increase labour productivity. Rawnsley suggests that more efficient organisation of our cities is an important yet overlooked mechanism for increasing productivity. Planning and transport projects can improve access to areas with dense economic activity within a city. The presentation draws on SGS modelling and mapping of Melbourne to show how improving Effective Job Density (EJD) through planning / transport policy will boost productivity. The analysis also reveals that the six major regional centres (CADs) within the metropolis have different prospects.