Australian Economy

Australia's stock exchange is among the top 15 largest in the world by market capitalization and it is the sixth largest country in the world by total area.


	The first Australian banknotes were printed over a century back, but the country had currency much earlier.
	The Australian dollar was divided into 20 shillings, which were then divided into 12 pennies.
	The Australian dollar banknotes issued between 1992 and 1996 were the first to be printed on a polymer substrate rather than paper.
	Australia invented ‘plastic’ money. Since 1998, banknotes have been made of polymer to ensure durability and avoid counterfeiting. Polymer banknotes outlast paper banknotes, are cleaner and more hygienic, and can be recycled at the end of their useful life to be converted into plastic products.
	The Sydney Stock Exchange established the Australian Options Market (AOM) in 1976, providing the first marketplace outside North America for a new investment instrument - Exchange Traded Options (ETOs).
	Sydney Futures Exchange becomes the first exchange outside of the United States to list a financial futures contract in 1979. (90-Day Bank Bill).
	In 1980, the Sydney Futures Exchange begins trading in US dollar futures, the world's first cash-settled futures contracts.
	45 years after the publication of the first equity market share price index, Sydney Futures Exchange releases the All Ordinaries share price index (SPI) contract as the first stock index futures product outside of the United States in 1983.
	The first bond contract outside of the US is introduced by Sydney Futures Exchange in 1984 with the two-year Australian Treasury bond futures.
	Sydney Futures Exchange introduces an after-hours electronic trading platform in 1989, making it the first futures exchange in the world to expand its regular floor trading.
	The first product of its kind in the world, overnight options on futures, was introduced by Sydney Futures Exchange in 1993.
	ASX became a listed business and underwent demutualization in 1998. It was the first exchange to demutualize and list on its own market, a move that many other exchanges have since followed suit.
	In 2006, the Sydney Futures Exchange merged with the ASX.
	From 1900 to 2009, Australia had the best performing stock market in the world.
	The Australian dollar is the world's sixth most traded currency, trailing only the US dollar, Japanese yen, euro, British pound, and Canadian dollar.
	The Australian dollar appears in 5.0% of foreign currency transactions, compared to 85.0% for the US dollar.
	The Australian dollar is also known as the 'Pacific peso.' Also, there is no one-dollar bill in Australia; the smallest bill is five dollars.
	The value of the Australian dollar fluctuates with the price of gold. This is due to the fact that Australia is the third largest exporter of the precious metal in the world.
	Australians spend more money on gambling per capita than any other country, with over 80% of Australian adults participating in some form of gambling. In addition, Australia is home to 20% of the world's poker machines.
	According to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) research, over 9 million Australians are currently investing in the market, with more than a quarter of those investors beginning in the last two years.
	There is a second stock exchange in Australia. While the ASX 200 receives the most attention in the media, Australia actually has two exchanges. The second, known as Cboe Australia (formerly Chi-X) exchange - CXA - has a market share of more than 20% of trade volume. It is not only Australia's second stock exchange, but it is also expected to house the first Bitcoin ETF.
	The ASX currently has over 2,000 companies listed, with more being added on a regular basis.
	1 April 2022 marks the 35th anniversary of the creation of ASX.
	The average Australian spends $1,377 per year on gambling, which is three times the amount spent by Americans.
	Australia has nearly $1.6 trillion in metal and ore reserves. Only South Africa and Russia have a higher number.
	Australia has the world's second largest mining industry, with the world's two largest mining companies, BHP and Rio Tinto, both being Australian.
	According to a new survey, Australians have shockingly low levels of basic financial literacy. ME Bank polled 1500 Australians in June of this year and discovered that 60% of them failed their quiz.
	In 2019-20, the average net worth of all Australian households was $1.04 million. In 2019-20, three out of every four households (75%) were in debt.
	Between 2009-10 and 2015-16, Australian household spending on goods and services increased by 15%, rising from an average of $1,236 per week to $1,425.
	By the end of 2019, forex trades involving the Australian dollar in Australia had increased by more than 100 percent since 2001. As of April 2019, the average daily turnover in was 119.15 billion US dollars.