They’ve got charming accents… exotic wildlife… and markets that haven’t seen a recession in 25 years.

Investors don’t talk enough about Australia. It’s the fastest-growing economy in the G7. And if that’s not impressive enough, the Aussies are just one year away from breaking the record for the longest period of GDP growth in modern history.

[ad#Google Adsense 336×280-IA]It’s especially remarkable when you consider the country’s unique circumstances…

Australia is a resource-rich nation with a large mining sector.

It relies very heavily on trade with China.

And, as you probably know, China is in the midst of an industrial slowdown.

It’s weakening commodities demand worldwide.

Yet the Economy Down Under continues to expand. How is this possible?

Two words: service sector.

Recently, Australian service exporters have been eating up market share. And that creates a great investment opportunity. Even on the other side of the planet, there are still plenty of ways for us to cash in.

Here’s why Australian companies are doing so well… and how you can profit from them.

A Rebalancing Act
Australia’s economic growth looks even more impressive compared to its peers. Canada is another resource-rich, highly developed economy. And just like Australia, it tends to rely on extraction and exports to China.

But Canada’s economy shrank by 0.4% last quarter. Australia grew by 0.5%. The difference is in these economies’ ability to rebalance.

The Australian economy is extremely adaptable. It weathered the Great Recession by avoiding public debt. At the time, most developed nations had loaded up on it.

Now it’s weathering the commodities slump with another contrarian move. Australians are shifting investments out of traditional mining standbys and into service exporters.

The rebalancing was helped along by a weak Australian dollar. This made Australian companies more competitive. The Turnbull government has also implemented pro-business fiscal policy. Careful government spending has nurtured Australian exporters.

Investing in Australian Companies
For Americans, the Australian Stock Exchange seems untouchable. Fortunately, there are many ways to indirectly invest.

Several Australian multinationals are available on American exchanges. One of the biggest gainers is construction conglomerate James Hardie Industries (NYSE: JHX). Another is IT giant Atlassian Corporation (Nasdaq: TEAM). Both are up by double digits this year.

Australia also offers good investments for folks who prefer ETFs. Two of the best are iShares MSCI Australia (NYSE: EWA) and WisdomTree Australia Dividend Fund (NYSE: AUSE). They offer lots of exposure to Australia’s fast-growing finance and tech sectors.

And they’re both outperforming the S&P so far this year.

Australia is still a wild and isolated country. That’s part of the reason why we tend to forget its economic clout. But the fact is, the Land Down Under continues to lead the Anglophone world in growth.

In-the-know investors should profit handsomely from this oft-overlooked market.

— Samuel Taube

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Source: Investment U