Australia trade balance: what the goods trade report shows and how it moves the Aussie

The Australia trade balance is the gap between the goods Australia sells abroad and the goods it buys, published each month by the Australian Bureau of Statistics as International Trade in Goods. A large share of the exports are resources and farm goods, so the report is also a read on demand from Asia and on commodity prices. Those are two things the Aussie trades on.

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By Mike. Explanation updated 2 Oct 2026; the dates and moves below update with the research.

Australia trade balance in short

Next release: Not on our calendar yet. It appears once the date is confirmed.
Published by: Australian Bureau of Statistics
When: Monthly, usually in the first week of the month, about four to six weeks after the month it covers, at 11:30 in the morning Canberra time. That is 03:30 in Amsterdam for most of the European summer and 01:30 in the European winter. In October, and for about a week around the start of April, both countries are on summer time and it is 02:30.
Currency: Australian dollar (AUD)
Impact: Medium: it moves the currency when it surprises
The line read first: The balance on goods, seasonally adjusted, in Australian dollars
Goods only: Monthly services trade stopped with the September 2023 figures; services come each quarter in the balance of payments
Largest buyer: China, with about 30% of Australia's exports according to the RBA

What is in the Australia trade balance report

The ABS builds the figures mainly from customs declarations collected by the Department of Home Affairs. The headline is the balance on goods on a balance of payments basis, seasonally adjusted: exports minus imports for the month.

Exports are split into groups such as metal ores and minerals, coal, other mineral fuels, rural goods like meat, grain and wool, and non-monetary gold.

Since the September 2023 figures the monthly report covers goods only. Trade in services comes once a quarter, in the balance of payments.

Why the Australia trade balance moves the Australian dollar

Exporters earn foreign currency and change much of it into Australian dollars to pay wages and costs at home. A larger surplus means more of that demand for the Aussie over time.

The report is also a read on China, which takes about 30% of Australian exports according to the Reserve Bank of Australia. Export values move with commodity prices as well as with the amounts shipped, so a strong month can reflect higher prices rather than more cargo.

How to read the trade balance against the forecast

The reaction in the Aussie is usually smaller than for CPI or the jobs report. Much of the swing comes from commodity prices that traders already see on their screens every day.

Check which part moved. A change in metal ores, coal or gas says more about demand from Asia than a swing in non-monetary gold.

Net exports also feed into GDP. A strong quarter for trade can lift the growth figure that comes out later.

What the Australian dollar did on the last release days

Measured on our own prices: the Australian dollar against the basket of the eight majors, from the London opening before the release to the one after it, so the release sits inside the window. Anything else that came out between those two openings is in it too, so a day with more news says less about this release alone.

Release	Amsterdam	Measured	AUD vs basket
1 Oct 2026	03:30	30 Sept to 1 Oct	-0.09%

For scale: on an ordinary day the Australian dollar moves 0.22% against the basket from one London opening to the next, either way, on average over the 250 trading days since 14 Oct 2025.

The forecast, the figure itself and what it changed in our view of the currency are in the app, next to the research.

Questions about Australia trade balance

What time is the Australia trade balance released?

At 11:30 in the morning Canberra time, usually in the first week of the month. In Amsterdam that is 03:30 for most of the European summer and 01:30 in the winter, with 02:30 in October and around the start of April.

Does the Australian trade balance include services?

Not any more. Since the figures for September 2023 the monthly report covers goods only. Services trade is published every quarter in the balance of payments.

Why does China matter for the Aussie?

China is the largest buyer of Australian exports, at about 30% of the total according to the RBA. Its demand for resources shows up in the trade figures and in the commodity prices the Aussie tends to track.

Does a bigger trade surplus make the Aussie stronger?

Over time it can, because exporters change foreign earnings into Australian dollars. On the day the move is usually small, unless the figure is far from the forecast.