Sydney is the corporate and financial centre of Australia and is also an important financial centre in the Asia Pacific. The Australian Stock Exchange and the Reserve Bank of Australia are located in Sydney, as are the headquarters of 90 banks and more than half of Australia's top companies, and the regional headquarters for around 500 multinational corporations.
Sydney is the biggest city in Australia with a metropolitan area population of over four million people. Sydney has fantastic sun-drenched natural attractions, including beautiful beaches and a picturesque harbor, a very modern city centre, cosmopolitan restaurants, superb shopping and very friendly people.
Australia has a very prosperous economy, with a per capita GDP slightly higher than the UK, Germany and France in terms of purchasing power parity. The country was ranked third in the United Nations 2005 Human Development Index and sixth in The Economist worldwide quality-of-life index 2005.
In recent years, the Australian economy has been resilient in the face of global economic downturn. Rising output in the domestic economy has been offsetting the global slump, and business and consumer confidence remains robust.
The Australian economy has not suffered a recession since the early 1990s. As of January 2006, unemployment was 5.3%, with 10,034,500 persons employed. The service sector of the economy, including tourism, education, and financial services, comprises 69% of GDP.
Below are representative salary and living costs in Australian dollars (AUD):
| AUD | AUD | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| INCOME | |||
| Salary package | 55,000 | 63,000 | |
| Superannuation | 4,538 | 5,198 | |
| Net salary after super, but before tax | 50,463 | 57,803 | |
| Fortnight payments in the year | 26 | 26 | |
| Net salary per fortnight before tax | 1,941 | 2,223 | |
| Tax deduction | 277 | 384 | |
| Net salary per fortnight | 1,664 | 1,840 | |
| Net salary per month | 3,328 | 3,679 | |
| Health care | |||
| Single AUD 1900 per year or Couple 3500 per year. Monthly payments. | 158 | 158 | |
| Net salary per month for a single person after super, tax and health care | 3,170 | 3,521 | |
| Net salary per year for a single person after super, tax and health care | 38,037 | 42,255 |
| AUD | AUD | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rent (For a flatshare - AUD180 per week, look on web at www.easyroommate.com) | 9,360 | Rent (AUD 280 per week for a furnished studio) | 14,560 | ||
| Transport (cheapest ticket for a train per week) | 1,716 | Transport (cheapest ticket for a train per week) | 1,716 | ||
| Food (restaurants cost about AUD 8-10 at lunchtime) | 2,340 | Food (restaurants cost about AUD 8-10 at lunchtime) | 2,340 | ||
| Supermarket (AUD 200 per month) | 2,400 | Supermarket (AUD 200 per month) | 2,400 | ||
| Electricity | 480 | Electricity | 480 | ||
| Gas | 150 | Gas | 150 | ||
| Mobile phone (the minimum plan) | 240 | Mobile phone (the minimum plan) | 240 | ||
| Home phone | 300 | Home phone | 300 | ||
| International calls ($10 tickets have 666 minutes) | 120 | International calls ($10 tickets have 666 minutes) | 120 | ||
| 17,106 | 22,396 |