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6 3. Economy 4.1 Gross Regional Product In the year ending June 2023, Rural City of Murray Bridge’s Gross Regional Product was $1.38 Billion, growing 2.6% on the previous year (refer Figure 3). Local Industry GRP has increased in the last five years except for a slight dip in 2020, likely to the COVID-19 pandemic. Figure 3. Gross Regional Product Rural City of Murray Bridge 2029 to 2023. Source: Gross Regional Product | RDA Murraylands and Riverland | economy.id 1,221 1,157 1,276 1,345 1,379 924 909 955 1,002 1,065 500 750 1,000 1,250 1,500 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 GRP ($M) 5 Year Trend Line - Rural City of Murray Bridge Gross Regional Product Headline Local Industry Headline Gross Regional Product (GRP) is a measure of size or net wealth generated by the local economy. Changes in this figure over time can represent changes in employment, productivity or the types of industries in the area. Local Industry GRP shows the value of the local economy, generated by the local workers within the area regardless of where they live, after taxes and dividends leave the area. It is the GRP produced by local industries. Economic Development and Growth Strategy 2026-2030 41

7 4.2 Industry Value-Add Generating $229 Million in 2022/23, Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing continues as the most productive industry within RCMB. Apart from Construction, the top five industries have historically remained consistent (refer Figure 4). Figure 4. Industry Value Add 2018/19 to 2022/2023 Rural City of Murray Bridge Source: Value added by industry | RDA Murraylands and Riverland | economy.id Change in Industry Value Add (IVA) Since RCMB adopted its current Economic Development Strategy 2020-32, the largest change in IVA has been within the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing industry with an $83.7M increase in the agriculture sector alone. Between 2019/20 and 2022/23, the total value added by industry in the RCMB increased by $200M. The largest changes were for Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (+$86M), Construction (+$56M), Health Care and Social Assistance (+$36M) and Manufacturing (+$20M) (refer Figure 5). Value added by industry is an indicator of business productivity. It shows how productive each industry sector is at increasing the value of its inputs. It is a more refined measure of the productivity of an industry sector than output (total gross revenue), as some industries have high levels of output but require large amounts of input expenditure to achieve. 42 The Rural City of Murray Bridge

8 Figure 5. Change in value-added by industry sector 2029/20 to 2022/23. 4.3 Output by Industry Sector Construction had the largest change in output for RCMB’s economy, generating $571M (21.8%) in 2022/23. This was followed by Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing ($424M or 16.2%) and Manufacturing ($391M or 14.9%) making up 52.9% of the total output. In comparison, the same three industries in South Australia accounted for 32% of the State’s total output. The total industry output in the RCMB increased by $423M between 2019/20 and 2022/23. Figure 6 highlights the largest changes in the output by industries during this time were for Construction (+$182M), Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (+$129M), Manufacturing (+$72M), and Health Care and Social Assistance (+$53M). Source: Output by industry | RDA Murraylands and Riverland | economy.id Output by industry is a gross measure of the total sales of each industry sector in the Rural City of Murray Bridge. It does not measure how productive each industry sector is at producing this output (measured by value added). Economic Development and Growth Strategy 2026-2030 43

9 Figure 6. Change in Output by Industry Sector. Source: National Institute of Economic and Industry Research (NIEIR). Compiled and presented in economy.id. 4.4 Exports The Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing, Manufacturing and Health Care and Social Assistance industries accounted for 72.6%, or $602.7M of RCMB’s total exports in 2022/23. The Agriculture and Manufacturing industries experienced significant increases in total exports in the past two years with Manufacturing increasing by $79.4M to $262.4M in 2022/23, and Agriculture exports increasing by a combined $65.1M over two years to $273.4M in 2022/23 (refer Figure 7). Exports by industry are sales of goods and services to non-resident households, businesses and other organisations, outside the Rural City of Murray Bridge boundaries. Exports (domestic) include all exports from the area to other parts of Australia. Exports (international) includes all exports from the Region to countries outside Australia. 44 The Rural City of Murray Bridge

10 Figure 7. Top Domestic Export Industries. Source: Exports by industry | RDA Murraylands and Riverland | economy.id Figure 8. Top International Exports. Source: Exports by industry | RDA Murraylands and Riverland | economy.id Economic Development and Growth Strategy 2026-2030 45

11 4.5 Expenditure by Sector The analysis shows the value of expenditure by each industry sector within RCMB on goods and services which are purchased from within the region, imported from the rest of Australia and imported from overseas, respectively. The total expenditure by industry sectors in RCMB on goods and services as inputs into production is estimated at $1,718.627 million. This includes $814.588 million of regional (local) expenditure, $720.544 million of expenditure on goods and services from the rest of Australia, and $183.495 million from overseas. Figure 9. Expenditure Breakdown RCMB. Source: Remplan 2024 release 1. 46 The Rural City of Murray Bridge

12 Regional Expenditure Domestic Imports Overseas Imports Total Industry Sector $M % $M % $M % $M % Manufacturing $172.689 10.0% $232.923 13.6% $159.443 9.3% $565.055 32.9% Construction $181.515 10.6% $101.590 5.9% $0.719 0.0% $283.823 16.5% Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing $95.269 5.5% $95.758 5.6% $9.513 0.6% $200.539 11.7% Health Care & Social Assistance $42.798 2.5% $32.368 1.9% $0.060 0.0% $75.226 4.4% Public Administration & Safety $39.632 2.3% $34.497 2.0% $0.111 0.0% $74.240 4.3% Electricity, Gas, Water & Waste Services $44.904 2.6% $26.674 1.6% $0.000 0.0% $71.578 4.2% Rental, Hiring & Real Estate Services $36.479 2.1% $24.651 1.4% $1.487 0.1% $62.617 3.6% Retail Trade $32.836 1.9% $29.356 1.7% $0.000 0.0% $62.192 3.6% Transport, Postal & Warehousing $30.636 1.8% $25.396 1.5% $0.172 0.0% $56.204 3.3% Other Services $20.254 1.2% $14.817 0.9% $0.049 0.0% $35.120 2.0% Accommodation & Food Services $18.976 1.1% $10.870 0.6% $2.046 0.1% $31.891 1.9% Administrative & Support Services $15.494 0.9% $12.381 0.7% $2.013 0.1% $29.888 1.7% Wholesale Trade $16.117 0.9% $13.651 0.8% $0.084 0.0% $29.851 1.7% Professional, Scientific & Technical Services $12.667 0.7% $12.728 0.7% $2.835 0.2% $28.230 1.6% Education & Training $14.490 0.8% $13.197 0.8% $0.142 0.0% $27.829 1.6% Mining $12.403 0.7% $9.749 0.6% $2.636 0.2% $24.788 1.4% Financial & Insurance Services $8.726 0.5% $12.697 0.7% $0.797 0.0% $22.220 1.3% Arts & Recreation Services $10.753 0.6% $10.456 0.6% $0.575 0.0% $21.785 1.3% Information Media & Telecommunications $7.950 0.5% $6.787 0.4% $0.813 0.0% $15.550 0.9% Total $814.588 47.4% $720.544 41.9% $183.495 10.7% $1,718.627 100.0% Figure 10. All industry sectors RCMB ranked by Expenditure. Source: Remplan 2024 release 1. Economic Development and Growth Strategy 2026-2030 47

13 4.6 Business Counts RCMB had 1,429 registered businesses in 2024. The Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing industry had the largest number of total registered businesses, comprising 265, or 18.5%, compared to 9.9% in South Australia. Construction closely follows with 236 businesses (16.5%), while Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services is the third largest industry with 154 businesses (10.8%). Comparing 2020 and 2024, the most significant changes were recorded in the sectors of Rental, Hiring & Real Estate, and Other Services, which includes repair & maintenance and personal and other services (Refer Figure 11). Figure 11. Rural City Murray Bridge registered businesses by industry 2024 v 2020. Source: Businesses by industry | RDA Murraylands and Riverland | economy.id 48 The Rural City of Murray Bridge

14 Figure 12. Rural City of Murray Bridge Business & Employee Count at 30 June 2020-2024. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics The data in figure 12 reveals stability and small growth in the number of businesses across all size categories, with notable variation in growth rates depending on business size. The non – employing category consistently represents the largest share of businesses and experienced moderate but stable growth over the past 4-year period, increasing from 795 in 2020 to 866 in 2024. This trend suggests a continued rise in sole proprietorships, freelancers, and self-employment, potentially driven by digital work opportunities and lifestyle preferences. While all categories experienced some growth, the most significant expansion occurred in the smallest business sizes, particularly non-employing and micro-employing firms (1–4 employees). This trend aligns with broader national and regional patterns highlighting entrepreneurship, flexible work, and small business resilience as key contributors to local economic dynamics. Economic Development and Growth Strategy 2026-2030 49

15 5. Leading Industries Analysis & Profiles In 2022/23, the Rural City of Murray Bridge contributed 1.2% of South Australia’s employment and 1.0% of its value add (refer Figure 13). Figure 13. Industry Contribution to South Australian Economy. Source: Industry sector analysis | RDA Murraylands and Riverland | economy.id. National Institute of Economic and Industry Research (NIEIR). 5.1 Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing The Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing sector is attributed to the sub sectors of Agriculture, and to a lesser extent, Support Services. RCMB’s Agriculture sector contributed 4.9% of South Australia’s employment and 3.3% of its value added in 2022/23 (refer Figure 14). Further to this, Support Services contributed 2.3% IVA, and 2.4% of the State’s employment. Industry sector profiles show how each industry contributes to the economy in the Rural City of Murray Bridge using ten economic measures generated by NIEIR economic modelling. 50 The Rural City of Murray Bridge