The Mining Boom: Impacts and Prospects

The mining boom: impacts and prospects examines the fears some Australians have about the potential adverse consequences of the 10-year mining boom. People worry about the damage caused by the high dollar, the impact of the boom on non-mining regions and the risk Australia will turn into a quarry economy. These are understandable concerns but the evidence does not bear them out.

The incomes of most Australians – not only those from mining states – have risen faster during the boom decade than in the one before. And while the boom has pushed up the dollar and made it hard for industries that compete internationally, Grattan’s analysis of comparable events overseas suggests that manufacturing and other trade-exposed industries will bounce back quickly once the exchange rate falls.

While there is always the risk of a downturn as resources investment and prices decline, Australia has low inflation and a recession is far from inevitable.