Capability 2.2.5
Economic
Definition
Transaction, market and labour-force datasets, including financial flows, securities trading, customs, payments, productivity; and workforce microdata supporting macroeconomic modelling and AI-driven forecasting.
Examples
- Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey (Melbourne Institute)
- Australian Real-Time Macroeconomic Database (The University of Melbourne)
- Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Business Characteristics Survey
- Resources and Energy Quarterly (Department of Industry, Science and Resources).
Indicators
- Timeliness and disaggregation of national economic microdata (e.g. frequency of updates, industry-level granularity)
- Standardised metadata schema
- Federated compliance and scalability (legal and institutional interoperability)
- FAIR compliance (findable, accessible, interoperable, reusable)
- CARE compliance (collective benefit, authority to control, responsiblilty and ethics)
- Provenance and lineage tracking
- Consent frameworks
- Onshore hosting and secure processing environments (e.g. SURE)
- Clear licensing
- Longevity and version control
- Domain specific data standards
- Machine readiness formatting
National AI Plan
PLAN COMMITMENT
Limited commitment
See general comment at 2.2.1 (Language, Arts, Culture & History). Notes the government may consider expanded access to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) economic datasets for AI training (Action 2), but does not include broader or system-level initiatives for economic data. Limited commitment by government in the plan aligns with recommendation to maintain and monitor.
Stocktake
Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA). Melbourne Institute / Australian Government Department of Social Services. Accessed October 2025. https://melbourneinstitute.unimelb.edu.au/hilda
Australian Real-Time Macroeconomic Database. RBA, University of Melbourne / FBE Macroeconomic Database. Accessed October 2025. https://fbe.unimelb.edu.au/economics/macrocentre/artmdatabase
ABS international trade data. Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Accessed October 2025. https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/economy/international-trade
Resources and energy quarterly: March 2025. Office of the Chief Economist / DISR (Department of Industry, Science and Resources). 31 March 2025. https://www.industry.gov.au/publications/resources-and-energy-quarterly-march-2025
Data After Dark: Quarterly Insights into the Night-Time Economy (NTE Smart Places Dashboard). NSW Government – Office of the 24-Hour Economy Commissioner. 22 December 2025. Accessed October 2025. https://www.nsw.gov.au/business-and-economy/office-of-24-hour-economy-commissioner/data-after-dark-quarterly-insights
Exports by Commodity (Australia dataset, sourced from ABS). CEIC Data / ISI Emerging Markets Group. Accessed October 2025. https://www.ceicdata.com/en/country/australia
Is the Stocktake missing evidence?
Share additional information for potential future Assessments