Australia Q4 Equipment Spending Reverses After Q3 Jump

Private new capital expenditure on equipment, plant, and machinery in Australia fell 1.7% qoq in Q4 2025, swinging from a marginally revised 11.2% surge in Q3 and marking the first contraction in three quarters. The pullback suggests some normalization after the previous quarter’s strong spike in investment amid record-high investment in data centers. By industry, mining-related equipment spending declined 0.8%. On the other hand, non-mining outlays continued to expand, rising 3.8% and cushioning the overall drop. On an annual basis, investment in equipment, plant, and machinery increased 9.4%, easing slightly from a 9.9% gain in Q3 but still reflecting solid underlying capital spending momentum.

Private new capital expenditure on equipment, plant, and machinery in Australia expanded by 11.5% quarter-on-quarter in the three months to September 2025, accelerating sharply from an upwardly revised 0.7% increase in the previous quarter. The rise was largely driven by non-mining industries, which recorded a 13.0% jump, while spending on mining equipment and machinery grew 4.5%. ‘Investment in data centres reached new highs, driving the strong rise in equipment and machinery capex for the information media and telecommunications industry, which went up 91.5%," said Tom Lay, Head of Business Statistics at the ABS. On an annual basis, spending on equipment, plant, and machinery climbed by 9.9% in the year to September, following a revised 0.1% rise in Q2.

Private new capital expenditure on equipment, plant, and machinery in Australia expanded by 0.3% quarter-on-quarter in the three months to June 2025, following an upwardly revised 1.7% contraction in the previous quarter. The increase was largely driven by non-mining industries, which recorded a 0.5% rise, partially offset by a 0.8% decline in mining-related equipment investment. “The 22.8% rise in information media and telecommunications reflected a return to strength in data centre investment after lighter spending in the March quarter. Retail trade also rose by 18.9%, following an increase in supply chain and fulfilment centre automation,” said Robert Ewing, Head of Business Statistics at the ABS. However, the rise in new equipment and machinery investment was offset by a sharp 21.7% drop in construction. On an annual basis, spending on equipment, plant, and machinery fell by 1.1% in the year to June, following a downwardly revised 2.1% decline in Q1.