Australian National Accounts: Finance and Wealth

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National, public and private corporations, government and household financial and capital accounts, and household balance sheets.

Reference period
September 2022
Released
15/12/2022

Key statistics

  • Household wealth fell $276.1b (1.9%) to $14,201b
  • Demand for credit was $117.5b, a fall of $34.1b
  • Australia recorded a net borrowing position of $8.1b following thirteen consecutive quarters of net lending
  • Capital investment as a proportion of GDP rose to 22.8%

Main features

Financing resources and investment table

Financial market summary table

Flow of funds diagrams

National investment

National investment decreased $4.5b to $141.9b in the September quarter.

  • General government investment decreased by $10.0b to $21.1b driven largely by a decrease in gross fixed capital formation in both state and local general government and national general government.
  • Non-financial corporations' investment increased by $5.6b to $69.6b, driven largely by an increase in change in inventories in private non-financial corporations. This was partially offset by a decrease in gross fixed capital formation in private non-financial corporations and public non-financial corporations.
  • Household investment was flat, remaining at $48.1b, with a decrease in change in inventories being offset by an increase in gross fixed capital formation.

Financial investment

Australia was a net borrower of $8.1b from rest of world (ROW). The main contributors were a:

  • $31.1b acquisition of equities by ROW
  • $11.0b acquisition of debt securities by ROW, primarily issued by banks and national general government 
  • Partly offset by $23.3b acquisition by Australia of ROW equity and $11.2b acquisition of bonds issued by ROW.

The ROW remains a significant holder of bonds issued by banks and national general government. Acquisition of equity by Australian companies reflect merger and acquisition activity occurring over the quarter. ROW acquired shares issued by Australian companies and also reinvested the profits of Australian subsidiaries.

Households

Households $52.7b net lending position was due to a $79.9b acquisition of financial assets, offset by $27.2b incurrence of liabilities. 

The acquisition of assets was driven by:

  • $50.1b in deposits
  • $27.5b in net equity in superannuation.

While liabilities were driven by:

  • $26.5b in loan borrowings

Deposit assets grew strongly this quarter as households received proceeds from tax returns. Households favoured placing excess funds in deposit accounts to take advantage of rising interest rates, particularly in term deposits. Increased contributions into pension funds reflected continued growth in employment and legislative changes to compulsory superannuation contributions on July 1. Demand for home loan borrowing has softened as interest rates increase and house prices fell.

Non-financial corporations

Non-financial corporations’ $50.9b net borrowing position was due to $10.8b acquisition of financial assets offset by $61.7b incurrence of liabilities. The acquisition of assets was driven by: 

  • $24.1b of equities

Acquisitions of assets were offset by: 

  • $21.2b withdrawal of deposits

Liabilities were driven by:

  • $31.6b in equities
  • $33.5b in loan borrowings

Non-financial corporations drew on deposits to make dividend payments and to facilitate merger and acquisition activity. The merger and acquisition activity was reflected in non-financial corporations’ acquisition of equities. Loan borrowings by private non-financial corporations increased as firms sought loan funding to further facilitate merger and acquisition activity and to fund investment in non-dwelling construction projects. Non-financial corporations continue to benefit from strong trade surpluses and gross operating surplus, with reinvested earnings increasing firms' equity capital. 

General government

General government’s $31.5b net borrowing position was due to a $13.2b disposal of financial assets and $18.2b incurrence of liabilities.

Assets were driven by:

  • $7.0b sale of equity holdings
  • $6.7b withdrawals of deposits

Liabilities were driven by:

  • $19.7b in loans

Sale of equity assets were driven by state and local general government's involvement in merger and acquisition activity. Deposit balances were drawn down to meet a bond maturity. State and territory governments continued to borrow funds from their respective central borrowing authorities to fund investment in transport and healthcare infrastructure.

Demand for credit

Demand for credit table

Demand for credit was $117.5b in the September quarter, of which:

  • other private non-financial corporations borrowed $68.5b
  • households borrowed $26.3b
  • general government borrowed $14.9b

Credit market outstanding increased $92.5b (1.1%) of which $25.0b was revaluation losses. Holding losses on the shares of private non-financial investment funds were $13.0b in line with falls in the share price of real estate investment trusts listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. Holding losses on Commonwealth government bonds of $9.8b were driven by increases in two and three year bond yields.

Private non-financial corporations

Loan borrowing by businesses was the strongest since March quarter 2020 and was used to fund investment in non-dwelling construction and finance merger and acquisition activity. Incorporated businesses also drew down on existing credit facilities to manage their liquidity requirements amid ongoing supply chain disruptions. Funding of business through equity expanded as foreign owned resource companies continued to reinvest their profits earned on elevated export revenue. The financing activity of businesses comprised:

  • loan borrowings of $28.9b
  • equity raising of $39.4b

Households

Housing credit growth slowed and reflects weakening housing market activity as interest rate increases have constrained demand for new housing loans. Long term loan borrowing by households experienced the weakest growth since March quarter 2021. Households repaid $1.5b of short term loans following seasonally weaker household spending in a September quarter. This was reflected in:

  • $28.0b of long term loan borrowings
  • partly offset by $1.5b repayment of short term loans

General government

The Commonwealth general government paid down their debt by $5.3b in the September quarter which was driven by a major bond line maturity. State and local general government's demand for credit was $20.2b as funds raised through semi-government bonds were passed on by their respective central borrowing authorities through loans. State government demand for credit continues to be driven by investment in road and rail infrastructure. This was reflected in:

  • $4.0b maturities of bonds issued by national general government 
  • $20.0b in loan borrowings by state and local general governments

Households

Balance sheet

Financial assets

Liabilities

Household wealth fell 1.9% ($276.1b) to $14,201.1b at the end of the September quarter. This was the second consecutive quarter of decline in household wealth and was driven by weakness in the housing market.

Wealth per capita fell 2.2% (-$12,050) to $545,532 per person.

Non-financial assets

Non-financial assets owned by households decreased 2.8% (-$300.6b), driven by a:

  • $316.6b fall in land and dwellings

Holding losses on residential land and dwellings reflected falls in property prices over the quarter, across most of the states.

Financial assets

Financial assets of households increased 0.8% ($50.5b), driven by a:

  • $51.3b rise in currency and deposits
  • $12.0b rise in shares and other equity, offset by a
  • $10.4b fall in superannuation reserves

Total household deposits increased strongly by 3.5% this quarter, with tax returns boosting overall deposits. Other deposits increased by 7.7% ($42.4b), which is the strongest growth since December 2008, reflecting continued increases in term deposits attributable to rising interest rates and volatile share market conditions. Transferable deposit increased 0.9% ($8.4b) after falling last quarter. 

Although domestic and overseas share markets performed poorly this quarter, optimism in households’ own incorporated businesses drove gains in households holdings of other private non-financial corporations’ equity. 
Superannuation losses due to poor market performance were partially offset by strong contributions ($27.5b), reflecting the increase of the superannuation guarantee from 10.0% to 10.5% and the removal of the $450 minimum monthly income threshold for employer contributions.

Liabilities

Household liabilities increased 0.9% ($26.0b), driven by a: 

  • $24.3b rise in housing loans, offset by a
  • $1.5b fall in short term loans

The growth in housing loans is the softest growth since September 2020 and reflects the weakened activity in the property market over the quarter, due to increases in interest rates and falling house prices in most states. The rise continues to be driven by both owner-occupier and investor loans, which increased by $18.7b and $5.6b. 

Private non-financial corporations

Financial assets

Liabilities

Private non-financial corporations demand for credit of $70.0b, was driven by:

  • $33.0b loan borrowings, and
  • $41.4b issuance of equity

Private non-financial corporations sourced funds through both debt and equity. This resulted in:

  • The debt to equity ratio (adjusted for price changes) remaining unchanged at 0.63

Firms sourced increasing amounts of funds through bank loans to fund non-dwelling construction investment and merger and acquisition activity. Non-financial corporations' equity continued to grow as foreign owned resource companies reinvested their retained profits arising from large trade surpluses. 

Financial corporations

Financial assets and liabilities

Authorised deposit-taking institutions (ADIs)

Financial assets

Liabilities

Financial assets of ADIs increased $241.1b, reflecting strong derivative revaluations resulting from global market volatility, continued increases in lending, and increases in exchange settlement account balances. This resulted in a: 

  • $35.4b increase in loans to households
  • $25.5b increase in loans to other private non-financial corporations
  • $24.9b increase in deposits with the central bank

Liabilities of ADIs grew $238.1b, driven by a:

  • $70.5b increase in deposits
  • $151.8b increase in derivatives as a result of global market volatility
  • $10.4b increase in equity as a result of increases in the value of equity of listed banks

 ADIs' funding from deposits (transactions) grew $56.6b, with a: 

  • $49.5b increase from household
  • $15.8b increase from state and local general governments, offset by a
  • $20.0b decrease from private non-financial corporations

Pension (superannuation) funds

Financial assets

Liabilities

Total financial assets of pension (superannuation) funds increased 0.5% ($12.3b), with a:

  • $5.8b increase in bonds
  • $2.9b increase in one name paper
  • $1.7b increase in shares and other equity.

Pension funds acquired $18.8b in shares and other equity of unlisted other private non-financial corporations and non-money market financial investment funds. Valuation losses of $17.0b on their equity assets were driven by holding losses on the equity of non-money market financial investment funds. Pension funds also invested in debt securities acquiring $6.1b in bonds and $2.6b in one name paper as they continue to diversify their investment portfolios.

(a) "Other" includes derivatives, loans, insurance technical reserves and other accounts receivable.

Government

National general government financial assets

National general government liabilities

State and local general government financial assets

State and local general government liabilities

General government

General government (national, and state and local) were net borrowers of $31.5b, mainly driven by a:

  • $19.8b increase in loan liabilities 

National general government net bond transactions were -$4.1b, due to a $24.8b bond line maturity in July that outweighed any new issuance. This was the first net negative transaction since since December 2019. The winding down of measures implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced the government's liquidity requirements. Loan liabilities of state and local governments continued to grow.

The total value of national government bonds outstanding ($819.0b) continued to fall due to further increases in bond yields. 

Deposits decreased $6.5b, driven by a strong decrease in national general government deposits with the central bank, which were used to fund the bond maturity in July. This was partially offset by a $15.9b increase in state and local general government deposits reflecting their involvement in merger and acquisition activity. 

(a) "Other" includes gold and special drawing rights, currency, bills of exchange, derivatives, shares and equity, unfunded superannuation and accounts payable/receivable.

Capital investment

Figures in the capital investment section are in seasonally adjusted current prices.

Net lending (+) / borrowing (-)

Australia's net borrowing position fell $17.1b this quarter, from a net lending position of $14.6b to a net borrowing position of $2.5b.

This was driven by a: 

  • $12.9b decrease in national net saving
  • $3.2b increase in gross fixed capital formation
  • $2.1b increase in change in inventories

National net borrowing as a proportion of GDP decreased this quarter driven by a fall in net savings. 

  • Financial corporations' net lending decreased by $0.6b to $9.9b
  • Non-financial corporations' net borrowing decreased by $16.3b from a net lending position of $6.9b to a net borrowing position of $9.4b
  • General government net borrowing increased by $1.9b to $13.9b
  • Households' net lending decreased by $4.7b to $12.7

Notable drivers were: 

  • Financial corporations' net lending was driven by a decrease in capital transfers, and an increase in gross fixed capital formation
  • Non-financial corporations' net borrowing was driven by a decrease in net savings and an increase in change in inventories
  • Households' net lending was driven by a decrease in net saving driven by a large rise in household consumption

Capital Investment

National capital investment increased to 22.8% as a proportion of GDP, also increasing 2.3% in current price seasonally adjusted terms.

Relative to GDP: 

  • Household capital investment increased to 8.0%
  • Non-financial corporations' capital investment increased to 10.4%
  • Financial corporations' capital investment was flat at 0.5%
  • General government capital investment decreased to 3.8%

In current price seasonally adjusted terms:

  • Non-financial corporations' capital investment increased, driven by an increase in public and private non-financial corporations
  • General government capital investment decreased, driven by a decrease in both national and state and local general government

Data downloads

Time series spreadsheets

Data files

Previous catalogue number

This release previously used catalogue number 5232.0

Revisions and changes

Revisions in this issue

This issue contains revisions to the original estimates of the capital accounts back to September quarter 1988 due to the incorporation of revisions to GDP and its components and income account. 

There have been revisions to previously published aggregates due to quality assurance reviews affecting the published aggregates after September quarter 2018, in addition to amendments to data collected in the ABS Survey of Financial Information, ABS Survey of International Investment and to data derived from Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) administrative data sets.

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