New data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows a strong increase in the number of new building and construction businesses in Victoria.

As of 30 June 2019, Victoria saw a total of 108,689 construction businesses – an increase of 4658 businesses or 4.5 per cent increase from the previous year. In terms of numbers, this is the largest increase among the states and territories and the second-largest behind Tasmania in terms of percentage increase (4.8 per cent increase for Tasmania). The significant jump in the number of construction businesses during this period has meant that construction remains the biggest industry in Victoria by number of businesses, with professional, scientific and technical services at a distant second with 80,846 businesses.

Such growth in construction businesses in Victoria has been primarily among small businesses with fewer than 20 employees, with most of these characterised as ‘sole proprietorships’. This has led to Victoria’s share of total construction businesses in Australia growing from 27.1 per cent to 27.5 per cent in the same period and is second only to New South Wales at 32.9 per cent.