Graph 5  While not all the extra revenue accrues to Australian residents because of the high levels of foreign ownership in the resources sector, this increase has helped boost our average standard of living.
Notwithstanding the current focus on the decline in mining investment, we should not lose sight of the fact that this extra export revenue, which has been made possible by the investment in extra capacity, has made us better off and has created opportunities that we would otherwise not have had.