Victorian economy lags

Western Australia and the Australian Capital Territory remain the best two performing economies, the Commonwealth Securities quarterly State of the States reports.

Using eight criteria to benchmark current performance against long-term state averages, CommSec finds there is now little to separate the Northern Territory, Queensland and NSW in the second tier, with Victoria close behind.

South Australia and then Tasmania are well behind, with ‘‘both states clearly underperforming other economies,’’ according to the report.

The analysis avoids giving each state an overall score.

It commends the Northern Territory on its economic growth, Western Australia on its retail trade, Queensland on equipment investment, Victoria and NSW on their labour markets, and the ACT on its housing market.