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


September 2026: Mounting uncertainty slows industrial activity

Key findings

  • The Australian Industry Index® declined 21.1 points in September to -25.5 (seasonally adjusted).
  • The activity, employment, and new orders indicators all deteriorated in September, reversing much of the improvement recorded in August.
  • Uncertainty remains a major barrier to industry, as volatile prices and market conditions inhibit investment, new orders and forward planning. Some firms are now reporting difficulties accessing finance.
  • Cost pressures remain elevated, as a second round of price rises for fuel and downstream products has seen high inflation re-emerge.
  • Manufacturing saw divergent performance, with upstream industries continuing to struggle with energy prices while downstream industries enjoyed better performance.
  • Construction activity has been slowing since Easter due to low consumer confidence and rising materials costs.

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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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.