Methodology

The STSA 2020-21 publication presents a complete set of data on the direct and indirect economic contribution of tourism for all states and territories. It builds on the ABS National TSA. 

The report highlights changes in 2020–21, in nominal terms. It also examines longer term patterns in tourism’s contribution to:

  • the national economy
  • state economies
  • territory economies. 

ABS System of National Accounts 

The ABS System of National Accounts (SNA) doesn’t capture tourism as a single industry. This is due to the sector’s diverse products and services. The National TSA bridges this gap by: 

  • measuring the economic contribution of tourism 
  • supplementing the SNA.

You can then compare between: 

  • the tourism industry’s economic contribution, and 
  • conventional industries’ contribution within an economy. 

You can also compare tourism sectors across different countries. 

Check the  Australian National Accounts: Tourism Satellite Account methodology on the ABS website for more information on the National TSA. 

Sources for data and methodology 

The approach in this STSA is to derive the direct contribution of tourism. It is similar to the approach developed by Pham et al. (2009). Tourism spend data and state/territory industry input-output (I-O) data are combined with the National TSA benchmark. This is to capture the: 

  • supply of tourism at the state/territory level 
  • demand for tourism at the state/territory level. 

The main sources for the data and methodology are: 

  • unpublished modelled regional expenditure data from Tourism Research Australia’s: 
    • IVS 
    • NVS.
  • I-O database from The Enormous Regional Model (Horridge, Madden & Wittwer, 2003). 
  • National TSA produced by the ABS (2021). 
  • Pham, T.D., L. Dwyer and R. Spurr (2009) ‘Constructing a regional TSA: The case of Queensland’, Tourism Analysis, 13, 5/6, pp. 445-460. 
  • Pham, T.D. and Dwyer, L. (2013), ‘Tourism Satellite Account and Its applications in CGE Modelling’, in Tisdell (ed), The Handbook of Tourism Economics – Analysis, New Applications and Case Studies, Chapter 22, World Scientific Publishing. 
  • Dwyer, L. and Pham, T.D. (2012), ‘CGE Modeling’, in Dwyer, Gill and Seetaram (eds), Research Methods in Tourism, Chapter 13, Edward Elgar Publishing. 

Indirect and total contribution of tourism 

We also measure indirect effects of tourism demand on businesses that provide goods and services to the tourism industry. For example, the indirect tourism demand generated from supplying a meal to a visitor. This starts with production of what the restaurant needs to make the meal. This might include fresh produce and electricity for cooking. 

This approach complements the direct effects presented through the TSA framework. It gives a clearer picture of the total contribution of tourism to the economy. However, they have been calculated using I-O analysis methods. This is because the TSA framework doesn’t measure these indirect effects at state and territory level. 

The I-O analysis methods give a breakdown of the supply and demand of commodities in the Australian economy. 

Multipliers for calculating tourism’s indirect effects 

We use multipliers for standard industries in the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industry Classification (ANZSIC) as the basis for calculating tourism’s indirect effects. This is because the tourism sector doesn’t represent a single industry in the economy.