Fast Market Research

New Market Study Published: Australia Defence & Security Report Q1 2014

Fast Market Research recommends "Australia Defence & Security Report Q1 2014" from Business Monitor International, now available

 

Boston, MA -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/30/2014 -- The election of Tony Abbott's coalition in September 2013 should spell a welcome increase in defence spending from the perspective of the struggling local defence industry. Abbott has pledged to increase spending from 1.59% of GDP now to 2% by 2023-24. That could result in the defence budget doubling over the coming decade, though that depends on the strength of Australia's GDP growth rate. But the pledge will be a challenging one to deliver, even if the national economy grows strongly, since Abbott has effectively committed himself to growing the defence budget by 5-6% annually for the next ten years. Even so, defence now looks set for healthy funding increases, even if Abbott struggles to meet his 2% target.

View Full Report Details and Table of Contents

Abbott's election may now bring some much-needed clarity to defence after an uncertain period under the Rudd and Gillard governments. Gillard's 2013 Defence White Paper did little to address the flaws of its 2009 predecessor, setting out ambitious procurement targets without explaining how they could be achieved or paid for. Abbott and his new Defence Minister David Johnston are now expected to prepare yet another White Paper for publication in 2014-15, in which they will explain the new government's position on some major procurement programmes. The most important of these are procurement of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, and the development of a next-generation submarine. Johnston has already stated that the future submarine is his number-one priority, and he has refused to countenance a capability gap when Australia's current submarine fleet begins to retire in the second half of the next decade.

In terms of international relations, Australia now appears to be in a good place. Relations with Indonesia are extremely good, the partnership with the US appears strong (and Washington will have welcomed Abbott's call for large defence budget increases), and Canberra has begun reassuring China about its security policy.

This process of reassurance started in 2012 with a government publication entitled 'Australia in the Asian Century', which set out a much more conciliatory platform for future Sino-Australian relations than the 2009 Defence White Paper. Julia Gillard also undertook an important visit to China in April 2013, during which she unveiled a 10-year plan for improving Sino-Australian ties - including boosting defence relations and trilateral military exercises involving American, Australian and Chinese forces. Abbott had a cordial first meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in October, and is now likely to visit China at Xi's invitation in 2014.

About Fast Market Research
Fast Market Research is an online aggregator and distributor of market research and business information. Representing the world's top research publishers and analysts, we provide quick and easy access to the best competitive intelligence available. Our unbiased, expert staff will help you find the right research to fit your requirements and your budget. For more information about these or related research reports, please visit our website at http://www.fastmr.com or call us at 1.800.844.8156.

Browse all Defense research reports at Fast Market Research

You may also be interested in these related reports:

- Croatia Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- Taiwan Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- Turkey Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- Kuwait Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- United Kingdom Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- France Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- Singapore Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- Poland Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- United Arab Emirates Defence & Security Report Q1 2014
- Saudi Arabia Defence & Security Report Q1 2014