New GRP figures highlight Toowoomba Region’s strong growth; pass $11 billion for first time. The Toowoomba Region recorded a 3.0% boost to its regional economy, which saw the Gross Regional Product (GRP) break the $11 billion mark for the first time in the financial year ended June 30, 2019, according to new data.
Last Wednesday Toowoomba Region Mayor Paul Antonio welcomed the latest figures based on industry and government data. Mayor Antonio, who chairs Toowoomba Regional Council’s Economic Development committee, said the region’s diverse economy had pushed the region’s GRP to $11.56 billion (for the year to June 30, 2019), up $340 million on the previous year. (Based on an inflation adjustment.) He said the region first passed the $10 billion GRP mark two years ago and that this growth highlighted strong ongoing private investor confidence in the region’s economy. “The latest reported yearly figures equate to regional economic growth of 3.0% per annum. This far exceeds national economic growth (2.0%), state growth of -0.3% and a rise of 1.5% across regional Queensland for the year to June 30, 2019,” Mayor Antonio said.
“It is also pleasing to note that the figures show a continuing upward trend. Remarkably, our average growth over the past 10 years is more than 3.9% per year, which also exceeds the state average of 1.85%”. Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise (TSBE) CEO Ali Davenport said the latest data was good news for Toowoomba. “Given that we’re in the worst drought in history and that agriculture is a large part of our GRP, these results go to prove how diverse and resilient our economy is,” Ms Davenport said.
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