Australia's current account balance fell by $0.5 billion in September quarter 2025 (seasonally adjusted, current prices) to a deficit of $16.6 billion, according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Jonathon Khoo, ABS head of international statistics, said:
'Australia's quarterly terms of trade have risen for the first time this calendar year, as a 0.1 per cent fall in export prices was offset by a larger 0.4 per cent fall in import prices. A stronger Australian dollar placed downward pressure on both import and export prices, although for exports this was offset by higher bulk commodity prices.'
The import of goods and services rose 1.1 per cent in the quarter, led by a 1.4 per cent rise in goods.
Imports of Fuels and lubricants led the rise in goods, with higher imports of refined fuels.
'The increase in refined fuels reflects Australia's reliance on overseas supply for diesel and other petroleum products,' Mr Khoo said.
Non-monetary gold offset the rise, falling after record levels of imports in the June quarter.
Imports of services rose 0.5 per cent with modest rises in Travel and Other services. Other personal travel continued to rise after falling to record lows during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Exports of goods and services rose 0.9 per cent this quarter, led by a 0.9 per cent rise in exports of goods - mostly in the mining industry with Metal ores and minerals, and Coal, coke and briquettes leading the rise.
'Iron ore prices were seasonally strong relative to previous September quarters, following China's announcement of new stimulus measures in May 2025, while Coal exports rebounded from falls brought on by weather disruptions in the June quarter,' Mr Khoo said.
Non-monetary gold exports continued to reach new highs in September 2025. This follows continued strength in the price of gold amid global economic uncertainty.
Exports of services rose 1.0 per cent, recording the third rise in a row since September quarter 2024.
The rise in exports of services was led by Other services with rises across a range of categories. Exports of transport passenger services also rose 13.1 per cent, with overseas visitors travelling more on Australian airlines.
The net primary income deficit narrowed by $0.3 billion (-$18.7 billion) in the September quarter 2025, driven by a $1.7 billion rise in primary income credits (inflows) and partly offset by an increase of $1.4 billion in primary income debits (outflows).
The $1.7 billion rise in inflows was driven by higher profits for Australian direct equity investment holdings and continued strong returns on portfolio equity investment holdings held overseas.
Primary income debits (outflows) increased this quarter due to stronger profits earned by both foreign direct investment and foreign portfolio investment in Australia over this quarter.
| Net primary income ($b) | Primary income credits ($b) | Primary income debits ($b) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep-20 | -4.8 | 15.3 | -20.1 |
| Dec-20 | -4.6 | 14.5 | -19.1 |
| Mar-21 | -7.8 | 15.6 | -23.4 |
| Jun-21 | -10.8 | 15.8 | -26.6 |
| Sep-21 | -15.5 | 17.6 | -33.1 |
| Dec-21 | -20.5 | 18.9 | -39.4 |
| Mar-22 | -24.7 | 20.0 | -44.7 |
| Jun-22 | -30.8 | 23.2 | -54.0 |
| Sep-22 | -32.6 | 22.3 | -54.9 |
| Dec-22 | -27.2 | 25.1 | -52.3 |
| Mar-23 | -29.0 | 22.4 | -51.4 |
| Jun-23 | -23.7 | 23.7 | -47.4 |
| Sep-23 | -23.6 | 24.9 | -48.5 |
| Dec-23 | -22.9 | 24.7 | -47.6 |
| Mar-24 | -23.4 | 26.0 | -49.4 |
| Jun-24 | -23.7 | 26.3 | -50.0 |
| Sep-24 | -19.2 | 27.4 | -46.6 |
| Dec-24 | -22.8 | 26.7 | -49.4 |
| Mar-25 | -19.7 | 27.4 | -47.1 |
| Jun-25 | -19.0 | 28.2 | -47.1 |
| Sep-25 | -18.7 | 29.8 | -48.5 |
(a) seasonally adjusted estimates at current prices
The financial account had a surplus of $31.2 billion, driven by net inflows of debt (+$28.4 billion) and net inflows of equity (+$2.8 billion).
'Australia's financial account surplus, which indicates funds flowing into Australia, had its largest surplus on record, driven by strong demand by overseas investors for Australian debt and equity,' Mr Khoo said.
'Overseas investors acquired $66.6b of Australian issued debt securities, the largest acquisition since December quarter 2023, driven by Commonwealth Government bonds. At the same time, demand for Australian portfolio equity by overseas investors remained high.'
Australia's net foreign debt liability position rose $14.7 billion to $1.43 trillion.
Australia's net foreign equity asset position fell by $4.0 billion to $769.3 billion, driven by the appreciation of the AUD against most major currencies.
The $0.6 billion fall in net trade (seasonally adjusted, chain volume measure) is expected to detract 0.1 percentage points from the September quarter 2025 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) movement.
