Statistics: Australian Economy

Discuss about the Statistics for Australian Economy.

 

Introduction

Education exports are significant for the Australian economy as it brings in the third highest revenue after iron ore and coal. Over the last few years, Australia has emerged as a favorable destination for various students from around the globe. In this backdrop, it is imperative to analyze the trends in these services on a year on year so that a comparison may be drawn which would prove useful in order to remove any bottlenecks and further enhance the revenue generated through these services. The aim of this essay is to critically analyze the usage of various statistical techniques in the selected brief dealing with international education exports.

Discussion

The source of the data in the selected article is ABS or Australian Bureau of Statistics. The data types used are ratio since all the data are numerical and also have a well defined zero (Flick, 2015). This is evident for both the absolute numbers and also the figures quoted in percentages. In order to summarize the relevant data, various graphical techniques and descriptive statistical tools have been employed. The total exports have been graphically expressed while in the attached table the breakup of countries has been offered which have availed these services so as to provide comprehensive knowledge to the reader in a concise form (Hair et. al., 2015). This information has immense utility as the policy initiatives of the government coupled with the promotional efforts of the various universities should be directed at these countries only. Further, for countries witnessing slow growth or de-growth over the years, the various adverse factors need to be analyzed. This is also true for the chart which tends to quantify the revenue breakup on the basis of Australian territory which is important in understanding the success of the various regions in able to attract foreign students which then may be replicated in the other regions as well (Hillier, 2006).

The type of statistics used is descriptive and not inferential which is apparent since the population data is available in the context of international education export and the same has been just summarized using various graphical techniques along with comparison with previous years so as to draw a comparison in relation to the overall performance (Hastie, Tibshirani. & Friedman, 2011). Further, the composition of the education export has also been presented which is critical so as to understand the focus areas where the universities need to focus in order to ensure that increase in education services export is witnessed. Inferential statistics is not required here as it is deployed when population characteristics need to be ascertained from the sample data using techniques such as hypothesis testing (Hillier, 2006).

Measures of location are not required in the given case but instead methods of variation have been deployed. The particular technique that is used is percentage which tends to compute the variation on a year on year basis in the income derived by offering educational services. Additionally, the variation in the respective shares of various nations that tend to act as the largest consumers of this education export has also been presented (Flick, 2015). The trend analysis may be done to analyze the countries whose share is increasing and those whose share is decreasing. For those nations whose share is on the decline, the possible reasons for the decline must be evaluated and if coming to Australia is an issue, then a local university or college may be established for enhancing the overall potential of the international export. A possible improvement is that in the diagram (shaped as Australian continent), the previous year contribution must be indicated which would provide additional information on the regions witnessed growth and those experiencing a slow down (Eriksson & Kovalainen, 2015).

Summary

International education exports are critical for the Australian economy considering the quantum of the same. Periodic analysis of the trend in this regard is pivotal so as to ensure that requisite measures may be taken by the government and universities in order to maximize the revenue generated through these avenues. The data reflected in the selected article is numerical and provided by ABS. The appropriate data type is ratio while the appropriate statistics is descriptive statistics as the data deals with describing the characteristics of the population using various graphical techniques and also use of variation techniques such as percentage. Further, the yearly comparison and altering of market share results in better information access to be user which could be used for critical decision making. Previous year exports from various states in Australia also could increase the informational content of the article.

References

Eriksson, P. & Kovalainen, A. (2015). Quantitative methods in business research (3^rded.). London: Sage Publications.

Flick, U. (2015). Introducing research methodology: A beginner's guide to doing a research project (4^thed.). New York: Sage Publications.

Hair, J. F., Wolfinbarger, M., Money, A. H., Samouel, P., & Page, M. J. (2015). Essentials of business research methods (2^nded.). New York: Routledge.

Hastie, T., Tibshirani, R. & Friedman, J. (2011). The Elements of Statistical Learning (4^thed.). New York: Springer Publications.

Hillier, F. (2006).Introduction to Operations Research.( 6^th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill Publications.