Trade Shows » Country » Australia » Melbourne

Business Overview
Melbourne is a large commercial and industrial center attracting number of national and international companies. Having complementary lifestyle and business, Melbourne stands out as the location of choice in Australia, offering the best array of services at the most competitive price. These competitive utility prices along with advanced infrastructure including access to broadband, advanced telecommunications has added to Melbourne's status as a pre-eminent business center in Asia-Pacific.

The city is thriving and sustainable economy that supports many different industries and Australian head quarters of most of the multinational corporations. Besides tourism and IT being the important contributors to the annual revenues of the city, Melbourne is quickly establishing itself as a center for multimedia and new technologies as well. In addition to the headquarters of three most important industries of Australia namely, Telstra, BHP Billiton and National Australia Bank, the Business Council of Australia, the Australian Council of Trade Unions and many of the companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange also resides in Melbourne.

The economy of the city is booming speedily with commercialization and as a result of this, it is undergoing a construction boom. Several large scale State Government funded projects combined with a new wave of private projects are literally changing the facet of Melbourne. Recent constructions like 5000-seat international convention center, Hilton Hotel and commercial precinct adjacent to the Melbourne Exhibition and Convention Center has not only increased the business in the city but has attracted large number of tourists as well.

With its elaborated and well-equipped event venues, Melbourne has always been a preferred choice for trade and commercial exhibitors from all over the world. The city holds innumerable fairs and fests all the year round including the IT infrastructure and National 4X4 Show.

Last but not the least, the city is also home to Australia's largest seaport and much of automotive industry, which include Ford and Toyota manufacturing facilities and the engine manufacturing facility of Holden.

Major Business Centers
The Australian Stock Exchange (ASX):
Established since 1871, ASX in Melbourne is the primary stock exchange of Australia. It began as separate state-based exchanges but today is all-electronic public company which itself is listed on the exchange. The Australian Stock Exchange ("ASX") changed its name to Australian Securities Exchange ("ASX") on 5 December 2006.

With the mining sector making up a relatively high proportion of the market, BHP Billiton, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Telstra Corporation, National Australia Bank and ANZ Banking Group (in terms of their market capitalization) forms the biggest stocks that are traded on the exchange.

The major market index is the S&P/ASX 200; an index made up of the top 200 shares in the ASX.

Melbourne Exhibition and Convention Center:
Located in Southbank to the south of Central Business District (CBD), the Center was built as a replacement for the Royal Exhibition Building. It consists of the Convention Center and the Exhibition Center, opened in 1990 and 1996 respectively.

Also known as "Jeff's Shed", the Exhibition Center has a pillarless floor space of 30,000 m2, making it the largest pillarless floor space in the Southern Hemisphere. With the highest standards of personal service and event facilities, MECC is the consistent winner of many prestigious 'Awards for Excellence'.

Whether it is the ease of access or the state-of-the-art theatres and meeting rooms, the Center exceeds the expectations in every way. Due to this level of Quality Controls and flexibility, the Center was the very first to earn the distinction of being named the World's 'Best Congress Center' by the principal professional body for congress center managers - the Association Internationale des Palais de Congres (AIPC).

Major Commercial Areas
Melbourne City Center (The City or The CBD):
Although the area is described as the center, it is not actually the demographic center of Melbourne, but is definitely the commercial and financial core of the city. The center accommodates most of the city’s important institutions and landmarks with the vast majority of corporate headquarters.

Also known as CBD, this metropolis area is the oldest part of Melbourne accommodating numerous retail, financial, legal, administrative, recreational, tourist and entertainment facilities and operates 24 hours a day.

Besides being home to the Federation Square and the Royal Botanic Gardens, the city center also is one of the most developed regions located in local government areas of the City of Melbourne.

Dandenong:
Located 31km southeast of CBD, Dandenong is an outer suburb of Melbourne. Once an independent district, it was absorbed by metropolitan Melbourne during the late 1960s as the city’s urban sprawl extended along the railway and freeway corridors.

Dandenong is a major manufacturing and commercial area with its own CBD being one of the largest activity centers outside of central Melbourne.

Major Manufacturing Zones
West Melbourne:
It is a sprawling region devoted mainly to railway lines, container yards, shipping docks bustling with industrial, warehouse and wholesale activities.

The area also shelters Melbourne Wholesale Fruit and Vegetable Market, the Coode Island petrochemical facility and the large Appleton Dock along with a small area housing businesses.

The most significant open space in the region is the Flagstaff Gardens.

Port Melbourne:
Bordered by the shore of Hobsons Bay and the lower reaches of the Yarra River, the Melbourne Port covers a large area including the West Gate Freeway to the north and the City of Port Phillip to the south.

The Port is a diverse and historic area featuring industrial and port areas along the Yarra to open parklands, bayside beaches, exclusive apartments and Beach Road's restaurants and cafes, whereas its suburb forms a major transport link from east to west.

The suburb of Fisherman’s Bend at the foot of Westgate Bridge has a significant place in Australian aviation history as the home of several prominent historical Australian aircraft design and manufacturing companies like Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation and Aeronautical Research Laboratory.

At present too, Fisherman’s Bend is a primarily industrial center which is the headquarters for Defense Science and Technology Organization, Holden Australia, Hawker de Havilland, GKN Aerospace Engineering Services, Cooperative Research Center for Advanced Composite Structures, Kraft Foods Toyota Australia, Port Security and campus of RMIT University.