The City of Sydney has released a quarterly snapshot that explores economic trends during the first quarter of 2023, which show the city is approaching pre-pandemic levels across several indicators.

The data reveals the night-time economy has bounced back strongly to 97% of 2019 levels. Spend between 6pm and 6am represents 29% of local spend in a 24-hour period, which is a higher portion than in 2019.

Saturday night is the star of the show, up 15% on pre-pandemic levels, with Sunday nights close behind in terms of growth, with 14% more being spent compared to pre-COVID-19 levels. Night-time spend on Fridays has recovered more slowly but now matches pre-pandemic performance.

Other key takeaways are:

• Local spend across Sydney has recovered to 98% of pre-pandemic levels (after adjusting for inflation) 
• Monthly local spend in March 2023 was $704 million up from $617 million in March 2022 
• Public transport journeys to central Sydney grew strongly in the 12 months to March 2023, rising to 84% of pre-pandemic levels 
• Sydney had 247,000 international visitor arrivals in February, up 16% from February 2022 
• International student arrivals to Australia  increased to 74% of 2019 levels. Sydney’s international student population continues to exceed the national average, increasing 6% from November 2021 to November 2022.

“Each quarter we’re pulling together a snapshot across a range of datasets relating to visitors, consumer spend, people movement, and the overall economic performance of our city,” Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore said.

“We are constantly talking with stakeholders to understand what is happening on the ground for their business and community, and this will give us a strong evidence base of what changes are occurring in our area.

“In turn, it will help us better understand how people connect with the city, provide valuable insights to businesses and community, and guide our strategies.”

Learn more here.

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Pictured main: Londres 126 in Quay Quarter.