Overseas students studying in Australia will have access to discounts of 35 per cent on public transport in cities such as Sydney, as part of a state government bid to boost the New South Wales economy.

The discounts will save international students more than AUS$800 on an annual MyMulti3 pass, AUS$450 on a MyMulti2, more than AUS$200 on a MyMulti3 90-day pass and $133 on a MyMulti2 90-day pass.

The travel concessions announced at the end of October by the Premier Barry O'Farrell “will increase the attraction of New South Wales as an ideal location for further education and provide better access to safe and affordable public transport options for overseas students."

He added that the travel concessions were in response to a recommendation from the New South Wales government's International Education and Research Taskforce which released its final report on 29 October.

The report recommended transport discounts for overseas students as a way to boost the education sector of the state. The report said global demand for international higher education was forecast to grow from 2.2million in 2005 to 3.7million in 2025. China, India, Malaysia and Indonesia are predicted to account for more than 60 per cent of this growth.