In the face of global and domestic economic headwinds, building approvals have rebounded to their strongest result in more than two years.

New Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows Victoria recorded $4.3 billion of approved buildings in December 2019.

It means Victoria leads the mainland states for both the value of residential and non-residential building approvals, non-residential buildings and total number of dwelling units.

The total value of Victorian building approvals rose by 44.5 per cent in December 2019 and was up by 79.6 per cent over the year. The large rise was due to an increase in both residential and non-residential approvals.

The value of residential building approvals in Victoria was the highest of the mainland states, with $2.4 billion approved in December alone – an increase of 26 per cent and 10-times greater than the national rate of 2.6 per cent.

More than 6,400 dwelling units were approved to be built in December – a 34 per cent increase in the month and 38.5 per cent increase over the year.

In more good news, $2 billion worth of non-residential buildings were approved in December – a monthly increase of 75.1 per cent – the largest increase among the mainland states.