Australian Industry Index®

The Australian Industry Index® is representative of the modern industrial ecosystem. It brings together the manufacturing, construction, engineering, technology and business services sectors – industries which together account for 36% of the Australian economy.

Recognising the heritage and importance of the Australian PMI® and Australia PCI®, both will continue as sub-indicators available within the Australian Industry Index®, however, there will no longer be separate release dates for these indexes.

The Australian Industry Index® is published on the first working Wednesday of each month (or the following working day if the Wednesday is a national holiday): Australian Industry Index release dates 2026


August 2026: Energy uncertainty weighs on new orders

Key findings

  • The Australian Industry Index® rose 22.7 points in August to -3.5 (seasonally adjusted), following a period of highly volatile conditions since the onset of the energy crisis.
  • The activity, employment, new orders and input indicators all improved this month, returning the strongest scores since the energy crisis began.
  • The lift was due to improved conditions in construction and business services, which both reported increased activity due to datacentre projects. Manufacturing has not benefited from this lift.
  • Pricing indicators diverged in August, with input prices rising but sales prices falling. This points to limited cost pass-on and mounting inflationary pressures on industrial margins.
  • Energy markets have stabilised but prices remain structurally elevated relative to pre-crisis levels, adding to cost pressures on industrials.

Economic Intelligence newsletter

September 2026

In the September edition of Economic Intelligence we cover:

  • How Australia’s labour market has evolved in 2026: This research note explores examines five areas of unevenness: overall labour market conditions, recruitment difficulty, employment on-costs, access to working from home, and the role of migrant workers.
  • Tracking Australian industry: Headline GDP growth concealed underlying weakness; consumer spending drove growth amid weak business investment; datacentre boom widened industry growth divide; import-intensive datacentre expansion delivered modest net growth gains; productivity remains stalled despite AI and datacentre investment; fuel imports jumped as energy crisis bites.
  • Economic Forecasts: OECD forecasts slower economic growth in Australia amid easing domestic demand and global uncertainty, while inflationary pressures are expected to prompt further modest interest rate increases in the near term.

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Detailed Index Data

Our reports and time series data for the Australian Industry Group Australian Industry Index® are available free of charge to members at any time via email from our economics research team economics@australianindustrygroup.com.au. Our data is available to non-members on an annual subscription basis or a one-off purchase. Our data subscribers receive the report and time series data for the activity index, sector and selected states via email each month.

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The Workplace Advice Line is Australian Industry Group’s national telephone advisory service for members’ on-the-spot workplace-related questions. 

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Australian Industry Group is the peak membership body for Australian industry, linking you to the insights, services and expertise you need to be successful. As a member of Australian Industry Group, you are part of a powerful, credible and experienced industry community.