The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) has forecasted that the Australia's mineral and energy exports will reach around $178 billion in 2008-09, compared with an estimated $120 billion in 2007-08.
As ABARE's acting executive director Ms Karen Schneider stated, the price outlook for mineral and energy commodities remains positive, reflecting continued strong demand and only modest world supply growth.
Accordingly, in 2008-09 a price increase is expected for many mineral and energy commodities, including iron ore, coal, crude oil, gold and aluminium.
In addition to higher prices, the overall volume of Australian mineral resource exports is forecast to see a marked rise in 2008-09.