Investor confidence in Australia is strong with spending on capital investment projects climbing 15 percent in the past year, the Delta Electricity and Access Economics Investment Monitor said on Monday. There was A$126.3 billion ($94.3 billion) worth of definite capital investment projects in Australia as of September 30, up from A$109.6 billion one year earlier, the joint economic report said.
The total comprises some A$96.5 billion worth of projects now underway and another A$29.8 billion definitely committed in capital spending plans, the report said.
"All up, the continued lift in the value of definite investment is a sign of investor confidence," the Delta-Access report said.
"Profits are high and some parts of the economy are running into capacity constraints.
"The value of 'committed' projects is healthy, suggesting no short-term drop off in project investment is likely"
It said 110 new projects were recorded in the September quarter.
Access Economics forecast underlying real business investment to climb 6.5 percent in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2005, before tapering to 4.2 percent growth in fiscal year 2006.